Empty Trust
by KPRS shipper
Summary: Kim and Ron are just getting comfortable with their new relatioship when a mysterious Ron look a like shows up, ready to stir up trouble for the two of them. KxR It is rated M for some minor language, adult themes, and minor violence.
1. The Start of it All

It was a calm sunny day as the two teenagers cuddled beneath a tree in the park. One with beautiful long auburn hair was dozing lightly, her head resting on the others chest. She had one arm wrapped snuggly around her companions waist, the other resting lightly on his arm.

The other had bright cornflake colored hair and chocolate brown eyes that were currently gazing at the sleeping figure on top of him. His right arm was wrapped protectively around her, holding her tight. Her hair was splayed across his arm and the soft silkiness of it tickled his skin. He could feel their hearts beating to the same rhythm and smiled to himself. They'd been a couple since Junior Prom about four months earlier and he was more in love with her now than ever before. He still didn't know how he'd managed to win the heart of the smartest, bravest, most beautiful girl in the school.

Not that he had anything to complain about physically. He'd managed to fill out quite a bit over the summer. He now stood at a little over 6 foot and had gained about ten pounds…and all of it was muscle. By no means was he ripped, but he had an athletic wiry body that his girlfriend absolutely loved. He guessed that years of being Kim Possible's sidekick had finally paid off.

Kim stirred slightly and Ron kissed the top of her head.

"Wake up sleeping beauty. Let's get you home before your dad sends out a search party," Ron whispered in her ear.

She looked up at him and smiled warmly. "Sorry, must of dozed off there for a minute," she said, "and don't try to fool me with that. Daddy trusts you completely. You just want to get home so you don't miss out on mom's brain meatloaf."

"Well, your mom does make some pretty badical food, especially her brain meatloaf," he proclaimed, "but either way we need to get going."

"Alright," Kim said, pouting slightly, "but we have to get our homework done as soon as supper's over so I have time for some Ron-shine later tonight."

"I think that can be arranged," he smiled, giving her a quick squeeze-hug before releasing her so she could get up.

They walked to the Possible residence hand in hand, chatting about anything and everything. Kim looked up at her BFBF (best friend boyfriend) with loving eyes. She loved him so much and very much appreciated his hot new body. She was really glad that she had fallen in love with him before he became so cute (Yes, he did have a hot body, but hot didn't describe him as a whole. Adorably cute was a way better description), otherwise she'd be a little worried that maybe that was the reason she developed an interest in him. He discovered her staring at him and waved a hand in front of her face.

"KP, did you hear a word I just said?" he asked, amused.

"What? No, sorry. Got distracted," she shrugged, a smile tugging at her lips.

Ron noticed the smile and couldn't resist leaning in to give her a gentle kiss. "This distraction wouldn't have anything to do with the Ron Man, would it? Distracting is what I do best " he admitted, a smile of his own spreading across his face.

"You could say that," she huskily declared, pulling him back in for a deeper kiss. His arms slid around her slim waist, pulling her closer while hers snaked around his neck and she began running her fingers through his hair. She slid her tongue into his mouth and soon their tongues were pressing up against each other, searching, probing. They didn't care that they were right there in the middle of the sidewalk, for everyone to see. At that moment, they felt as though they were the only two people in the world.

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"Kimmie, hurry up! Ronald will be here soon!" Mrs. Possible yelled up the stairs.

"Coming mom!" Kim yelled back, grabbing her backpack and rushing down the stairs. She grabbed a bowl and filled it with milk and cereal, besides coffee the only thing she could cook without catching the kitchen on fire, before sitting down at the table and eating it.

"Are you two taking the car or the motorcycle today?" Mrs. Possible asked as Kim shoveled the food into her mouth.

"The motorcycle," she declared, finishing up and putting her bowl in the sink, "It's so fun, but I really wish Ron would let me drive it more often." The reason he didn't was because every time she got behind the wheel she couldn't help but push the motorcycle to the highest speed it could possibly go. He loved her to death, but was very afraid of her losing control and getting hurt, easily one of his worst fears. So for the most part, he did the driving.

"Good morning Possible clan!" Ron said, just then strolling into the kitchen. He kissed Kim good morning, keeping it at a loving peck considering her parents and brothers were right there.

"Ewe…!" Jim said

"Cooties!" Tim finished. Both of them now stood taller than Kim. They were about the same size as Ron, and Kim still thought it was weird having to look up at them.

"What? You want a kiss too?" Kim teased, smiling.

"No way!" they screamed in unison, running out of the kitchen before she could kiss them.

"Bye Mom! We're leaving!" Kim yelled as she and Ron headed towards the door.

"Have a good day, you two!" Mrs. Possible called back as they stepped outside.

It was another breezy sunny day. Now that they were outside, Ron turned to Kim and gave her a proper good morning kiss. When they finally pulled apart, Kim grabbed a helmet and was about to throw a leg over the bike when an idea came to her.

"Ronnie," she said turning to him, "I was wondering……would it be okay if I drove the motorcycle to school today?"

Ron froze. This wasn't the same slow blue bike that Ron used to have. Nope, he'd gotten a newer, sleeker black motorcycle as a gift from Master Sensei, compliments of Yamonuchi. It was ten times faster and ten times more fun in Kim's opinion. Her beautiful green eyes widened, pleading with him.

"Come on KP," Ron whined, exasperated, "How about I drive today? You know it scares me when you do. You drive way too fast!"

Kim decided it was time to pull out her best weapon against him. Sidling up to him slowly, her full lower lip began protruding out, quivering. Her eyes got big as saucers, twin pools of pleading green. She hit him with the Puppy Dog Pout full force, and he didn't stand a chance. Even though he must have seen it half a dozen times, he still hadn't found a way to resist the PDP.

"Oooohhhh! Not the Puppy Dog Pout!" Ron cried, his resolve breaking like cheap glass, "Ugh! Fine you can drive, but please go slow."

"Yes!," Kim cried, her face instantly lighting up and her mouth transforming into a triumphant smile. She hopped on the bike, Ron reluctantly following after. Not being able to resist, she revved the engine a couple times. This bike was definitely fun to drive. It gave her an exhilarating, wild and free feeling.

"Ready?" she called back over her shoulder as Ron's hands went around her waist.

Ron just groaned in response, and before you could blink an eye, she took off in a squeal of tires and flying gravel.

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Monique was standing outside the school doors, flirting with Brick. They'd been happily dating since Junior Prom, and Monique couldn't get enough of him. He may have seemed intimidating considering he was the high school quarterback, but she knew that in actuality he was a big softy. More like an oversized, cuddly teddy bear than a big, tough football player. It didn't hurt that he was also kind of rich. He had a humongous pool in the backyard. They had spent the majority of their time there over the summer, sometimes with Kim and Ron in tow.

They had just pulled apart from a deep kiss, when the roar of an engine filled their ears. They managed to jump back just in time as a speeding motorcycle whizzed past them. Skidding sideways, it screeched to a halt about an inch away from slamming into the outside of the Middleton High School. Monique, recognizing who it was, pulled Brick towards the duo. Every person lounging about on the plush grass outside the school had jumped up the second they'd heard the noise. They were now all watching as the laughing driver, swiftly jumped off the bike, pulled off her helmet, and kicked down the kickstand all in one deft motion. She was completely alive, her fiery red hair blew about in the breeze, framing her shining green eyes and face positively glowing with excitement. All this just added to her beauty and every guy in the vicinity stared at her raptly with mouths hanging open.

She turned towards the passenger who was having a completely different reaction. He sat paralyzed on the bike, unmoving and in shock. Kim just smiled as she watched him slowly get off the bike and collapse to the ground.

"Sweet, sweet solid earth," he squeaked, grabbing up handfuls of grass. Rufus crawled out of his pocket, flopping down on the grass beside Ron, groaning.

"What? It wasn't that bad! I went way slower than last time," she said with mock anger, hands on her hips.

"Why did I let you talk me into letting you drive?" he whined.

"Because you just can't resist me," she purred silkily, her voice and demeanor instantly changing. She slowly bent down and sat on top of him, straddling his waist. She just gazed at him for a moment before bending down and pressing her body tightly against his. With her tight, lithe body pressed up on his like that, he couldn't help that a few hormonal urges raced through him. Her face hovered inches over his and her long hair formed a soft blanket around the two. He could feel her sweet warm breath rolling across his neck. Kim smirked, feeling him shiver under her, and whispered into his ear, "And because when I drive, you get to feel my butt pressed up against your…"

"Okay, you two! You'd better stop with the PDA before Barkin catches you," Monique warned, walking up to them with Brick by her side, "Girl, get up off him, before every guy in the place starts dripping drool on their shoes."

Kim reluctantly got up, blushing slightly. She embarrassingly looked around and noticed she had many guys' attention. They'd been back at school for about two weeks now, and were just starting to get back into the swing of things. By now, everyone was kind of used to their PDA, including Barkin. Surprisingly, he didn't get on their case unless it got out of hand…..like it just had.

"Hey, Monique," Kim replied, straitening her shirt.

"That was some sweet driving, Possible!" Brick exclaimed in awe. "I never knew you could ride like that."

"Trust me, it's not as fun when you're on the back of the bike, completely helpless and praying for your life," Ron quipped, standing up and wrapping his arms around his girlfriend's waist from behind, letting her know he was just kidding. She leaned back into him, and he held her tight.

"Look at you two. Can't keep your hands off each other. I always knew you guys belonged together," Monique declared, shaking her head.

"Oh, and like you guys aren't all over each other too. I saw you two kissing before we pulled up," Kim said with a smug smile on her face.

"WCIS, girl? We're two hotties that like to get down," Monique proclaimed.

"WCIS?" Kim asked.

"What can I say," Monique answered. Just then the warning bell rang, telling everyone they had five minutes before class started.

"Well we better get going if we don't want to be late," Kim declared, reluctantly disentangling herself from Ron's grasp. She knew if she ever said it out loud it would sound totally cheesy, but when he let go she felt as though a piece of her went with him. Luckily, t hey had their first class and all their afternoon classes together.

After a quick stop at their lockers, which were right next to each other, Kim and Ron headed for their first class hand in hand. They each quickly plopped down into a seat, sitting next to each other. The bell rang just as (who else?) Mr. Barkin came strolling into the room. Kim heard Ron groan quietly beside her and gave him a reassuring smile.

"Unfortunately, Mrs. Friddle's cat died today so I will be filling in for her," Mr. Barkin barked, "and I expect everyone to be taking notes while I give my lecture."

The rest of the class period went on as it usually did with Mr. Barkin droning on and on about the Civil War, and the students alternately taking notes and dozing off.

Finally the bell signaling the end of class rang, and everyone began picking up their books and walking out the door. The rest of their classes until lunch were separate so Ron gave Kim a quick kiss on the lips.

"I'll come find you at our lockers before lunch," she told him before heading for her next class.

"Can't wait," Ron replied, smiling.

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It was just before lunch and Kim was walking towards her locker when she spotted Ron over next to Felix's locker. Felix was nowhere in sight and Kim wondered what he was doing. She crept up to him quietly, sliding her arms around his waist and kissing the back of his neck softly. Did he get taller?

"Hey Ronnie. Why are you over here? I thought we agreed to meet by our lockers," she purred into his ear as she began to nuzzle it. Had they gotten smaller in the past couple of hours?

"Ummm, sorry but I think you got the wrong guy. Uhhhh…my name's not Ronnie…not that I'm complaining," said the deep voice of the guy she currently had her arms around. He was most definitely not Ron.

"Ahhh!" She gave a little cry as she immediately released him. He turned around to face her…and she felt as though she had been sucker punched in the gut. She gazed up at him in awe. He looked almost exactly like Ron. He had dark, deep brown eyes, beautiful blond hair, and a few faint adorable freckles across the bridge of his nose. His face was leaner and he was a tad bit more muscular in the shoulders than Ron, but still had a wiry body just like his that set her body on fire. He even had a red shirt similar to Ron's jersey on and she immediately understood how she had so easily mistaken him for Ron. He was like Ron in every way, except that he was somehow better looking.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry. I…uh…thought you were someone else," she said blushing ferociously.

"Yeah I kinda figured that," he said with a disarming grin, "Whoever this Ronnie is, he's a very lucky guy."

"Right…umm…he's my boyfriend," Kim stammered, still trying to get over the fact that this dude looked so much like her boyfriend, "and his name's Ron."

"Well I'm Brad, by the way," he said smiling and reaching out his hand for her to shake, "Handshaking seems a little formal though, after the greeting you just gave me."

"Huh, yeah, sorry about that" she said with a nervous laugh, shaking the hand he held out, "I'm…"

"Kim Possible, I know. I recognize you from TV," he said, an amused glint in his eye, "and don't apologize. I very much enjoyed it."

This just made her blush deeper.

"I haven't seen you around here before. Are you new?" she asked. She couldn't help but be curious about this man who looked so much like her boyfriend.

"Yeah. Me and my dad just moved here from Go City," he replied. "I can already tell I'm gonna love it here. Are all the people here as…um…friendly as you?"

"Don't count on it," she said with a laugh. _Hmmm…he's cute and he has a sense of humor, _she thought. _But he's no Ron, _a different part of her mind admitted.

"Yeah, well I gotta go meet Ron at our lockers. It was great meeting you. I guess I'll…um…see you around," she said, as she walked away.

"Definitely," he agreed, smiling after her.

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"Hey KP," Ron said as she walked up to him, Monique, Brick, and Felix. "Where've you been?"

"Hey Ronnie," she said, smiling. She had gotten over her initial surprise at seeing Brad and slid up to Ron, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. His automatically went around her lithe waist. He couldn't resist giving her tight round little butt a quick squeeze. He knew it sounded shallow, but he absolutely loved her butt. All of her cheerleading, kung-fu, and saving the world had shaped it into nothing short of the 8th World Wonder. It was no secret that every guy in school couldn't help but ogle it. His little squeeze caused Brick and Felix to begin sweating slightly and her to widen her eyes in surprise before giving him a sly smile.

She growled lightly before crushing her body into his. Her lips found his and she began to kiss him passionately. She was as light as a feather but extremely strong for a hundred and five pound girl, and the force of the impact caused him to back up against the lockers. They stayed locked in their embrace, never losing intensity, for a full two minutes before Monique began to get impatient. Felix and Brick were trying not to stare. It was still kinda weird for them to see Kim and Ron, who had been best friends and only best friends since Pre-K, making out right in the middle of the hallway.

"Alright! That's enough. I'm hungry and I'm not gonna stand around here waiting for you two to get done with your make out session. Let's go," Monique said, exasperated.

Kim who had unknowingly wrapped her legs around Ron's waist and lifted herself up to his level while making out, slid down Ron's body tantalizingly slow. "I'm hungry too," she said coyly, "but not for food."

She traced her finger lightly down Ron's chest stopping just above the top of his pants. Ron didn't know if he could take it. His pants were definitely tightening in a certain sensitive area and he was beginning to sweat slightly.

"Kim, cut it out before you make the boy pop," Monique sighed.

"Hmmm…I wouldn't say boy, Mon," Kim replied, but she grabbed Ron's hand and started heading towards the cafeteria.

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Once they'd all sat down to eat, Ron repeated his question from earlier. "Why did it take you so long to meet us at our lockers?"

She had managed to totally forget about Brad, but now the memory of what had happened came flooding back.

"Well, it was the weirdest thing, but I met this guy named Brad who looks almost exactly like you, Ron," she explained between bites, "In fact, he wasn't facing me and I kinda thought he was you so I went up and hugged him from behind. Man, was I surprised when he turned around and it wasn't you! I was majorly embarrassed but he just played it off like it was no big."

"Umm…that wouldn't happen to be him over there in the lunch line, would it?" Monique asked.

Kim followed the direction of her gaze, spotting Brad chatting with some guy in line.

"Yeah, that's him," Kim told her.

"Mmmmm mmmmm….that man is fine!" Monique exclaimed while Brick tried not to glare at the guy.

"He doesn't look anything like me, KP. He just looks like some pretty boy with my hair and eye color," Ron said with contempt.

"Ron, in case you haven't noticed, you've turned into a bit of a pretty boy yourself… Don't get me wrong. You're not nearly as pretty-boyish as Brad, but you've gotten taller, leaner, and fitter just over the summer and somehow I don't think you're quite done growing yet either," Kim said, reaching out to grab his hand.

"Kim's right boy. If it weren't for your goofiness, you could definitely pass for a pretty boy," Monique explained.

"Monique! Don't go telling him that. His goofiness is what makes him Ron and I love his Ronness," Kim pouted.

"Not to worry KP. My Ronness ain't goin anywhere," Ron assured her.

"Good. I love you Ron," Kim smiled lovingly at him in response.

Ron leaned over and gave her a quick but loving peck on the lips. "I love you too KP." Just then a shadow passed over the table. They looked up to see Brad's smiling face.

"Hey, do you mind if I sit with you guys?" he asked kindly.

"Of course not. Go right on ahead big boy," Monique said, gesturing towards the table.

He pulled up a chair and sat down between Monique and Kim. Ron, Brick, and Felix looked at him suspiciously. None of them had a good feeling about this guy. They could tell he was interested in Kim by the way he looked at her. At least he wasn't stupid enough to try and sit between Ron and Kim because **that** would have resulted in disaster. Of course, for Ron it was natural to feel protective of Kim. He wasn't about to let anyone come steal her away from him. Even if this Brad dude tried, Ron knew that Kim loved him. She would never intentionally cheat on him. And even though Felix wasn't dating Kim and Brick was dating Monique, they were still extremely protective of her also, especially after the Diablo incident. They weren't about to let her get hurt like that again. Kim didn't notice Brad's stare as she chatted with Monique about Club Banana's new fall line, but the three boys did and they didn't like it one bit.


	2. Tempers Flare

Kim and Ron walked hand in hand toward his motorcycle at the end of the day. They were chatting about Barkin's homework when Brad walked up to them.

"Hey. Do you guys want a ride?" he offered, gesturing towards his car.

"Um…no thanks. We've got Ron's motorcycle," Kim replied, pointing at it.

"Wait. Kim, was that _**you**_ I saw driving it this morning?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes," she said, crossing her arms, "Why is that so surprising?"

"Oh…um…no reason," he stammered, "I could tell you were a fast kind of girl, but I always thought girls didn't generally like riding fast on motorcycles, much less driving fast on them."

"Well, then you thought wrong," she snapped, "Not all girls are the helpless damsel-in-distress types."

"Sorry. I didn't mean for it to sound that way. I only meant that I was impressed," he recovered quickly, realizing his mistake.

"Right," she said skeptically, arms still crossed.

"Would you mind if I went over and took a look at it?" he asked her.

"You'd have to ask Ron. It's _**his**_ motorcycle. I mean, who ever heard of a girl owning a motorcycle?!" she sarcastically replied, still angry at him.

"Look, I'm really sorry, okay? That came out all wrong…I can't help it. I get a little bit nervous when I talk to girls, especially ones as pretty as you," he apologized, eyes downcast.

Ron thought smoke must be coming out of his ears for sure, he was so tweaked. It was probably the cheesiest line he'd ever heard. _I get a little bit nervous when I talk to girls, especially ones as pretty as you_… Kim would see right through it…wouldn't she?

"Look, it's okay. Just remember that I can do anything a boy can do, okay?" she said, her anger instantly melting away at what she thought was his sincerity. He looked so much like Ron right then, that her heart instantly warmed towards him.

_Apparently she can't, _Ron thought.

Brad's face brightened. "Okay, promise. So Ron, can I come take a look?" he asked, turning his attention to the extremely ticked off Ron Stoppable.

Ron didn't trust himself to speak so he just shook his head yes. He couldn't very well say no without looking like a total jerk. He wrapped his arm around Kim's waist, protectively. His whole body language was screaming, get away she's mine and if you try to touch her I'll rip you in two you freaking pretty boy!

Kim, sensing that Ron was feeling threatened, put her arm around his waist and her head on his shoulder, snuggling into him. All of a sudden she felt overwhelmed with her love for him, and got a feeling that he didn't really like Brad. The threesome walked towards Ron's sleek black motorcycle. Kim loved the motorcycle just as much as Ron did, if not more. So when Brad started asking questions about it, Kim responded with lots of enthusiasm.

She disentangled herself from Ron and walked around pointing out and explaining parts to Brad. He had a vast knowledge of all things mechanical so he asked many questions. Ron watched him closely and noticed that every time Kim bent down to show him something or answer a question, his eyes were on her round butt and not the motorcycle. Ron watched as Brad bent down asking a question and pretended to look at a part of the motorcycle, but in actuality he only did it to get a better angle to stare at her backside.

Ron was furious. He walked closer to Brad, ready to absolutely _**paste **_him when he felt a restraining hand on his arm. He turned to find Felix there, a cold glint in his eye as he glared at Brad. He'd seen the whole thing and knew Ron was an inch away from blowing up. Felix quickly positioned himself so that he was between Brad and Kim, breaking Brad's view.

"Hey Brad," he said, his voice cheery but his eyes shooting daggers at this Ron look-a-like. "I was wondering if you could give me a hand over there with my wheelchair. It's been short-circuiting and I hear you're good with machines."

Brad couldn't refuse without looking completely rude so he agreed to help Felix.

"Sure, my good man. I'd be glad to help. I'll see you later Kim, Ron," he threw over his shoulder as he walked away.

Ron tried to calm himself down a bit. Thank god Felix had been there to save his butt. If not, he would have punched Brad so hard that there was no way he'd have gotten off without a suspension.

Kim looked over at Ron and, noticing his expression, snaked her arms around his neck.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" she asked, concern filling her eyes. She really had no idea what had just happened.

"Oh nothing. Just tweaked about all the extra homework Barkin gave me," he replied, his arms automatically pulling her tighter as they went around her waist. He hated lying to Kim, but he knew that if he told her the truth, she'd just tell him that he was over analyzing and had nothing to worry about.

This answer seemed to satisfy Kim. "Don't worry. I'll help you with it. In fact, let's have our own little study date…with lots of breaks in between of course," she said with a sly smile.

She stood on her tiptoes and kissed the top of his forehead, her lips making a trail down to the tip of his nose. Then she kissed it too. All thoughts of Brad instantly melted away as he felt her soft warm lips on his face. Said lips then moved down to his and she gave him a soft sweet kiss. A little moan escaped his lips as he pulled her impossibly tighter against him. She tasted so good, like mint and bubble gum. He could so easily get drunk with the taste of her, the smell of her, the feel of her against him. It was a feeling that couldn't possibly be matched and he promised himself then and there that there was no way he'd ever let anyone, especially some pretty boy, hurt her. He knew what Brad wanted from her, and it wasn't a friend to talk to. Ron could see it, Felix could see it, and even Brick could see it. _Well, pretty boy_ he thought _bring it on. Ron Stoppable is a force to be reckoned with._

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Ron didn't know that standing ten feet from them was Brad himself, watching their every move. He wanted Kim Possible, and he wanted her **bad**. Just watching that loser kiss her made him sick to his stomach. **He** should be the one kissing her, **he** should be the one holding her, and **he** should be the one to show her what a real man is. He'd heard that she would fall for any guy with a pretty face like a sack of potatoes, but that obviously wasn't the case anymore. _Oh no, not with __**Ronnie**__ around _he thought with contempt. She _**would **_be his if it killed him. He usually didn't go to this much to trouble to get a girl, hell they usually threw themselves at **him**, but this was a special case. No he didn't just want Kim as a one night stand…he wanted her as a partner in crime. This was very unusual for him, but he knew that Kim deserved that. She definitely deserved better than that loser she was dating now. No to mention having _**the**_ Kim Possible on his arm would be the cherry on top of the perfect life he had set up for himself. They would be the perfect villainous couple. He knew he'd have a tough time getting her to cross over to the dark side, but was confident that once she fell hopelessly in love with him, she wouldn't be able to refuse. Even if he somehow couldn't convince her to come willingly, he'd do it forcefully or just outright kill her. If he couldn't have her, no one would. Especially not little Ronnie. Oh, he'd get her, and soon too. He knew he couldn't bide his time much longer. He could feel himself getting more and more impatient. He'd almost messed it up with that stupid sexist comment, but luckily he'd regained his composure and was now back in her good graces. He wasn't too worried about Ron finding out what he was up to. He knew that even if he did find out, he'd merely be a small nuisance in his quest to have Kim Possible. He knew that when he had his mind set on something, no one could stop him from getting it. He slowly walked towards his car with an evil little smile on his face as he thought of exactly what he'd do with her once he had her in his clutches.

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Kim was laying on Ron's bed, intently reading a book while Ron sat at his desk, trying to get some homework done.

Ron watched as Kim stopped to stretch and yawn before turning her attention back to the book in her hands. He just couldn't concentrate with her looking so incredibly appealing and innocent, reading her book. He knew he needed to get his homework done, but at the moment all of his attention was focused on the red haired, green eyed beauty currently lounging on his bed.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to walk over there, crawl on top of her, and start kissing her neck? He'd start to nibble on her ear, causing her to giggle, before slowly making his way down her neck, stopping just before he hit the top of her shirt. Then, he'd reach down and slip the shirt over her head, dropping it to the floor. That would leave her clad only in her bra. He would reach behind her as she arched her back to give him better access and unclasp the annoying garment before tossing it aside. He'd then proceed to move his lips down her body. He'd spend some time caressing her before moving further down. He'd trace her cute little belly button with his tongue before moving further and further down, down, down over her muscular tight stomach. He'd slowly and teasingly unclasp her cargos, pushing them down over her soft but tight thighs before pulling them off and tossing them on the floor with her bra and shirt. He could practically hear the groan she'd make as he began tracing the inside of her thighs with his fingers, most likely making her gorgeous body twitch with pleasure. He knew all of her 'sweet' spots and could make her go crazy with just a few well placed kisses or touches. He'd move up to her panties, probably the pink lacy ones, and drag them down her soft, smooth, shapely legs. Then he'd…

"Hey Ronnie?," Kim said, breaking his daydream Her eyes never left her book, "Do you know what indigence means?"

"Oh…umm…no. Sorry KP," Ron stammered, trying to regain his composure. He was officially turned on and he was done trying to do his homework. His hormone addled mind wouldn't allow him to concentrate on anything but her. They hadn't actually had sex yet, but they'd come pretty close dozens of times and he thought about it quite a bit. He couldn't help but have a few fantasies. They'd talked about it and decided they would wait until high school was over before making the decision to either wait or make love. He knew that the longer they waited, the more special the first time would be and he was okay with that. Kim was totally worth it. Then an idea formed in Ron's head and he couldn't stop the sly smile from crossing his features.

Kim's attention was so focused on the book that she didn't even notice Ron creeping slowly and silently towards the bed. Sensing someone was standing over her she looked up, but before she had time to react, Ron reached towards her tummy and started tickling her ruthlessly.

"RON!," she screamed, squirming in an attempt to get him off her. She began laughing uncontrollably, "Stop, that tickles!"

"Sorry Kimila," Ron was laughing as he continued to tickle her ribs, "but your tummy's just too fun to tickle."

Kim was laughing so hard, tears were streaming down her face. She knew she couldn't take it much longer before she peed her pants. Before he could blink an eye, she used a swift trick she'd learned from her Global Justice training to flip him over and pin him down.

"Now, the tables are turned," she said smugly, laughter still dancing in her eyes.

"Ahhh! But Kimila, you forget that I'm not ticklish," he said in a mock evil voice, triumphantly.

Kim widened her eyes in surprise. He was right, he **wasn't** ticklish. She unknowingly relaxed her grip on him and he took the opportunity to squirm away and tackle her back to the ground. He straddled her and pinned her arms down with his.

"You on the other hand, are extremely ticklish," he said, his eyes crinkling as he smiled.

"Ron, please no! I'm going to pee my pants if you tickle me again!" she exclaimed, squirming and wriggling, futilely trying to get up.

"Kimmie, Kimmie. You need to relax and quit your squirming," Ron chastised. Not many people knew that he had a secret weapon almost as effective as the Puppy Dog Pout. In fact, he was pretty sure no one but him knew that Kim had two very 'special' spots on her neck.

The first was right behind and a little below her right ear. All he had to do was kiss it and she would completely melt into a pile of mush in his arms. All of her muscles would relax and she would agree to absolutely anything he said. She was his for the taking. _In fact _he thought _It's probably a good thing I'm the only one who knows about it. That kind of information could be dangerous in the wrong hands. _

The second spot was on the left side of her neck, right where her neck and shoulder met at her collarbone. If he kissed that spot and then proceeded to blow in her left ear immediately after, she would be brought into a high state of arousal in mere seconds. She would instantly be in 'the mood'. While he'd only used it a couple of times, he knew this information would be extremely useful once they were married and he could actually follow up the act by making love to her. He generally used the first one to get her to relax or agree to something he wanted and the second one when she was angry with him and he really wanted her to forgive him. She'd be so aroused, she'd forget her anger instantly and proceed to kiss the hell out of him.

He decided the time was right to use the first one so he bent down and kissed right behind her tiny right ear. She instantly relaxed in his grip, her whole body melting into his. All the nerves in her body tingled until she couldn't have wiggled her fingers if she'd wanted to. After a moment of holding her, he gently lifted her onto the bed, laying down next to her and gathering her in his arms. They were on their sides with the side of her face pressed into his chest.

"Now are you relaxed, my Kimmie?" Ron teased her softly. He was thoroughly exhausted after trying to hold her down. For 105 pounds she was extremely strong.

"Mmmmm hmmmm…" was all she could manage, her face a serene mask of total bliss.

"I love you Kim," he whispered in her ear before kissing it, holding her tightly against him.

"Love you too Ronnie," she mumbled, still disoriented. Soon both of their breathing slowed into a gentle rhythm and they fell fast asleep in each other's arms.

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Ron was feeling much better about the whole Brad thing the next day at school. The bell signaling the end of first period had just rung and they were headed out the door. Ron discovered that Kim was talking to him about something and while he tried to listen, he really did, he just couldn't concentrate on her voice. Nope, he was to busy concentrating on the lower half of her body. She'd worn a tantalizingly short skirt that day and he found that his gaze kept wandering down to gaze at the beauty that was that perfect butt of hers.

"Well, I'll see you before lunch, Ron" she said, standing on her tiptoes to give him a quick kiss. "Love you."

His eyes snapped up from her butt when she kissed him. "Love you too KP," he replied smiling.

Just then who should show up but….Brad, of course.

"Hey Kim! I think I have my next class with you. Do you care if we walk together?" Brad asked with a sweet, sincere smile plastered on his face.

"Sure," Kim answered, "Bye Ron!" she managed to call over her shoulder as Brad hastily pulled her away.

Ron's gaze followed them as they walked toward their next class. Kim was chatting away again, but Ron noticed that, like he himself had done only moments before, Brad was concentrating on Kim's body and not her voice. Ron watched as Brad eye-raped Kim, drinking in every muscle, every curve of her body. All the while Kim chatted about whatever, completely oblivious to what Brad was currently doing not a foot from her. Ron could feel his blood pressure rising, could feel himself clenching his fists, could hear the roar in his ears as anger overcame him. Who the hell does this dude think he is?! Kim had a boyfriend…him!…and they loved each other! Brad had absolutely no chance with her whatsoever so why was he throwing himself at her? He started to stalk towards them, ready to lay the beat down on pretty boy, when the bell for second period rang. Great! He was already late! Everyone in the hall who had noticed what was happening, held their breath as they watched Ron reluctantly turn around and stomp away to his next class, fury still evident in his eyes. They all let out their breath slowly. Ron rarely ever got mad and none of them had ever seen him **that** mad before. It was always Kim who was losing her temper. In fact, she was sort of famous for it in the Middleton High halls. Whenever anyone saw her stalking the halls, eyes burning green fire, they knew to stay clear. Ron was the only one who'd ever been able to calm her down. So it was rather scary to see the calm half of Team Possible freak out like that.

As he walked down the halls, Ron could feel everyone's eyes on him, but he didn't care. All he wanted was to feel his fist connect with Brad's face. He decided he would have a nice long talk with pretty boy later.

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Ron made sure to corner Brad before lunch period with murder in his eyes. Luckily, Kim was no where around. He knew pretty boy would never admit to anything if she was with them.

"Brad," he said his voice and eyes steely, "We need to talk."

"Sure, bro!" Brad said, with a completely fake innocent smile plastered on his face.

Ron roughly pulled him into an empty classroom, slamming the door behind them.

"Dude, do we have a problem?!" Ron yelled, whirling around to face Brad the second the door clicked shut.

"What are you talking about?" Brad asked with a knowing glint in his eyes and an evil smile on his face.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about pretty boy!," Ron bellowed, "You need to leave Kim the hell alone! I've seen the way you stare at her! I know what you want from her! And even if she is completely oblivious to it, I'm not! I swear if you ever look at her again the way I saw you looking at her yesterday in the parking lot and then again this morning in the hallway, I will break every bone in your body…and then really hurt you!"

"Bro, I think you need to calm down," Brad's voice was as steely as Ron's face, "Kim's a very gorgeous girl with the hottest body I've ever seen, and trust me, I've seen a lot. You can't expect guys not to even **try** to steal her from you now can you? And just so you know, I'm looking out for her just like you. I really care about Kim, and there's tons of guys out there who'd love to take advantage of her. I don't intend to let that happen."

"I'm her boyfriend! I'll take care of that!" Ron argued, "I don't need your help. In fact, you're just one of those guys who'd love to take advantage of her! I don't trust you as far as I can throw you! I love Kim, and I'll never let you or Eric or anyone else hurt her! Do you hear me?!"

Just then the door opened slightly to show a very confused Kim Possible peeking her head in the doorway.

"Ron? Brad?" she asked confused, "What's going on in here? I heard shouting."

She looked over at Ron whose eyes had welled up after his passionate outburst. Seeing a tear run down his cheek, she rushed over to him.

"Ron, sweetie, what's wrong? What happened?" she asked concern filling her eyes. She took his cheeks in her hands and looked deep into his chocolate brown eyes, as if searching for the answer to her questions.

Ron just shook his head. "It's noting KP," he said, eyes downcast.

Remembering that Brad was in the room, she turned to face him, fury burning fiercely in her eyes, hands clenching into tight fists.

"What the hell did you do to him?" she whispered, voice as cold as ice.

Even though she hadn't even made a move towards him, he unwillingly took a few steps back at her raw anger.

"Nothing, nothing," he hastily explained, "I just heard him in here yelling so I came to see what was wrong. He'd just stubbed his toe on the desk. I was only in here for a minute before you came in."

"Oh," Kim said, the fury in her gaze quickly faded away as Brad explained.

"Well, baby, are you okay?" she asked, immediately turning to Ron. She put both of her hands on his shoulders and rested her head on his chest. "It's not broken is it?"

He wrapped his arms around her. "No, I don't think so," he said, feeling absolutely awful about lying to Kim. He wasn't even sure why he went along with it. He just knew Kim would get mad at him for trying to pick a fight if he told her the truth.

"If you say so," she said, voice filled with love and concern as she reached up to kiss his cheek.

"Oh, come on! That's all the injured boyfriend gets, is a kiss on the cheek?" Ron teased.

Kim giggled before giving him a long loving kiss on the lips.

"Mmmmm…..much better," Ron said, a goofy grin lighting up his face.

He pulled back to look into her emerald eyes and he saw all the love he felt for her reflected back at him, and his face slowly turned semi-serious. He pulled her into his chest, burying his face deep into her auburn hair and taking a deep, cleansing breath. The smell of her strawberry shampoo instantly calmed him, and he let the feeling of her wash over him like cool water on a fire.


	3. Bonnie's fight

Sorry this next chapter is so short. There's more to come soon. I noticed in my other chapters I forgot to do the whole Kim Possible and friends belongs to Disney, so Kim Possible and friends belong to Disney! I'd also like to give a special thanks to KimStoppable, xStarsandHeartsx, and CajunBear73 for their helpful reviews!

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"How'd it go with Brad?" Felix asked Ron in the hall after school. Ron had briefed him in on everything that had happened and Felix was just as tweaked as Ron was about Brad.

"Could've been better. He just talked about how he didn't want guys to take advantage of her and was just trying to protect her," Ron explained.

"But that's what we're here for. We don't need him!" Felix exclaimed.

"That's what I said! Not to mention Kim can kinda take care of herself," Ron agreed.

"You got that right," Brick agreed, coming up behind them. "Are you guys talking about Brad?"

"Yeah," Felix said. He proceeded to tell Brick all that Ron had told him.

"So keep an eye on pretty boy. I don't have every class with Kim and I want to be sure he doesn't try anything tricky while I'm not there," Ron told them.

"Of course," Brick and Felix said in unison.

"Of course what?" Kim asked, walking up from behind them and hooking her arm through Ron's.

"Of course…um…they did their homework," Ron hastily explained, "I asked them if they got it done and they said of course."

Brick and Felix nodded their heads in agreement.

"Oh," Kim said, "Well I've got cheerleading practice. Meet me in the gym when football practice is over, okay Ron?"

"Sounds badical KP," he said, "Love you."

"Love you too," she replied, giving him a quick kiss before she hurried off.

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There was five minutes left of cheerleading practice and Kim was really anxious to go meet Ron. She'd hardly got to talk to him all day, and she hated being away from him for more than a few hours. She felt the absence of his presence deep in her heart.

"Okay, great job today girls!" Kim said, smiling. She'd worked them very hard and they'd kept up really well. She was extremely proud of her squad, "Let's wrap it up a few minutes early. I can tell you're all tired."

The girls sighed gratefully. All except one that is.

"Uhh, K?" Bonnie said, strutting forward, "There's still five minutes left of practice you know."

"I know **B**," Kim said, "I figured the squad could go in a few minutes early considering we all worked really hard today."

"Well, **some** of us did anyway," Bonnie said loudly, eyeing Hope and Tara, "and the others couldn't stop giggling and gossiping throughout the whole practice."

Hope and Tara, eyes downcast, let their shoulders drop dejectedly.

"No, we **all **worked hard and we **all** deserve to go in a few minutes early. I don't need you putting down my squad, Bonnie," Kim said, anger beginning to creep into her voice, "Like you're one to talk anyway, always yapping away on your cell phone!"

Some of the girls had begun to circle around the two, having already sensed the Possible temper threatening to reach breaking point.

"Can I help it that I have a life and all you have is that loser boyfriend of yours?" Bonnie asked Kim disgustedly.

"Bonnie, he is **not** a loser! And I'm so sick and tired of you calling him that! You're so caught up in the food chain that you wouldn't recognize a great guy if he bit you in the butt! You're **this **close to pushing me over the edge, Bonnie, and trust me, you **don't** want to go there!" Kim growled, holding her thumb and forefinger about a centimeter apart.

"That's probably why you're so anxious to get of here, isn't it?" Bonnie asked smugly, ignoring Kim's threat, "You wanna go make sure no big bad football players are beating up the loser?"

"I told you to quit calling him that!" Kim shouted, taking a step forward as Bonnie involuntarily took a step back, "And Ron can take care of himself!"

By now the whole cheerleading squad was circled around them, eager to see which would win the verbal battle.

"Oh please K. You think just because he muscled up a bit he can take care of himself?" Bonnie laughed, "It's a wonder he isn't dead yet after all the times he's messed up on your stupid missions. Lord knows, the world would be a much better place if he was."

Kim screamed. "Bonnie, you stuck-up little slut! How could you even say such a nasty thing? Ron's never done a thing to you and all you can do is put him down trying to be queen bitch of the high school! Ron's a great guy and he doesn't deserve that from anyone! Why don't you go find somebody to spread you're legs for and leave me and Ron the hell alone?!"

"You did not just call me a slut, you flat-chested bitch!" Bonnie snarled. Without thinking about the fact that Kim was highly skilled in sixteen styles of kung-fu, Bonnie lunged at her, aiming to rip her beautiful red hair right out of her head. Using all of the cheerleading and ballet skills she'd ever learned, Bonnie threw all of her weight into the hardest punch she'd ever thrown in her life. Kim easily caught it with a swiftness and grace that nobody would have ever thought possible. She grabbed Bonnie's arm, using her momentum against her, and threw her over her shoulder, into the nearest wall as easily as though Bonnie were nothing more than an oversized pillow.

Hope and Tara stared in awe. They knew Kim was a good fighter, but they'd never actually seen her fight up close before. It was a truly amazing sight, almost like watching a graceful dancer on the dance floor instead of a teen hero fighting a high school bully.

"Come on Bon-Bon," Kim taunted, "If you're going to throw a punch at least give me one that's a **little** bit of a challenge!"

Even though she was sore all over, Bonnie threw herself up ready to attack again. She ran towards Kim, except this time instead of throwing all of her weight into one punch, she would throw a punch, a kick, another punch, a leg sweep, a high kick, a low kick, a chest punch…the attack was never ending. She put everything she had into her fists and feet, but Kim dodged and blocked all her attacks as easily as though she were batting away a pesky fly. This only made Bonnie madder which made her throw harder and harder punches, never even coming close to hitting her target.

Kim was getting bored. This wasn't even a little challenging. She was wasting time she could be spending with Ron. After a full five minutes of the one sided fight, Kim decided to end it. When Bonnie threw a punch at her, she did an easy triple flip over her head, landing in a crouch. Bonnie turned around, expecting an attack, but Kim was just standing there. Bonnie rushed at her again while Kim continued to stand there. At the last possible second she pulled back and stuck her foot out.

Bonnie went down like a ton of bricks, landing on her face. Kim bent down, stuck her knee into the small of Bonnie's back, and pinned her arms down to her sides as she bent low over her to whisper menacingly in her ear, "Not so tough now, are we Bonnie? I beat you pretty bad. Humiliating isn't it? And I never even threw a punch the whole time. So let's get one thing straight. Make fun of me all you want, but the **second** you diss my Ron, I will beat your ass so badly, you're not gonna even be able to sit down without having to strap pillows to it!"

She could feel her temper rising, threatening to break loose and lose control. She wanted nothing more than to wail on Bonnie. She could too. It would be so easy to knock the slut out, to cause her so much pain she'd never say a mean thing to anyone ever again. Her voice rose as she worked herself into even more of a temper, "I swear I'll…."

Her voice trailed off as she felt two reassuring warm hands on her shoulders. She looked up to see Ron standing over her with a worried look on his face. She knew how it must look to him. Here she was, pinning down Bonnie who was sweating and breathing very hard, fear in her eyes while she hadn't even broken a sweat.

"KP, Tara and Hope came to find me. They told me everything that happened. I know how bad you want to beat up Bon-Bon right now, but is it really worth it? From what I just saw, you beat her pretty badly without even throwing a punch," Ron said, eyes full of love and concern.

Kim thought for a moment as she let her anger slowly recede and realized that Ron was absolutely right.

"Oh Ron, you're right. She's not worth it," Kim whispered. She got off Bonnie, and stared at the floor dejectedly. As her anger faded, it was quickly replaced with sadness and the overwhelming urge to cry.

Ron, noticing this, came up and wrapped his arms around her in a tight warm hug. She immediately latched herself onto him. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, clinging to him as she let the tears come full force. He slowly and gently led her to their car. Luckily, there was hardly anyone there since it'd been about two hours since school had ended.

Once they were safely inside the car, he scooped her up and gently placed her on his lap. Her head automatically went to his chest and he began stroking her soft hair. She let her tears run freely down her face as she sobbed into him.

"Shhhhh….It's ok KP. I'm here," Ron gently soothed her as he let her tears run their course. It broke his heart to hear her cry and he wanted nothing more than to kiss her tears away, but he knew she needed this. So he just held onto her, providing as much comfort as he possibly could. He was the only one she ever let see this side of her and he knew it. She was always miss independent in front of everyone else, but deep down she needed love and approval just like everybody else. He still wasn't quite sure what had happened since Tara and Hope hadn't really given him any details. They just told him that Bonnie was taunting Kim, and Kim was getting really angry. Knowing Kim's temper very well, he'd immediately rushed to stop her from doing something she would later regret.

"How much did you see?" Kim finally whispered after she'd calmed down.

"I came in right as you stepped back and tripped Bonnie," Ron answered, trying not to smile.

"So you heard everything we said?," Kim asked. Ron just nodded, "What I did was so not me. That's not how a teen hero is supposed to act. I even cussed! And I called Bonnie a stuck-up slut!"

"Okay, I really wish I'd been there to see that part," Ron admitted, grinning, "So what exactly did happen?"

Kim then told him absolutely everything that she and Bonnie had said and done. When she finally finished, she let out a sigh and rested her head on his chest again.

"Well it sounds to me like it wasn't your fault at all. I mean all you did was defend yourself. You even let Bonnie throw in a ton of punches without giving her hardly any payback! If you ask me, you're as innocent as a saint," Ron said, once she told him everything. He was actually extremely proud of her and how she'd handled the sitch. He knew how annoying Bonnie could be and how hot-headed Kim could get. He was also positively glowing inside from the fact that she had done it all because she was defending him against Bonnie!

"I guess," she said, smiling a little. Ron always made her feel better, but there was something still bothering her, "Ron? Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, KP. Anything."

"If there was one thing about me you could change, physically, what would it be?" she lifted her head off of his shoulder to look into his eyes.

"What do you mean? I wouldn't change a thing about you. You're beautiful just the way you are and I wouldn't have you any other way," Ron answered, kind of confused.

"Ron, that's ferociously sweet, but you do realize that you've gotten kind of hot, don't you? And that other girls are taking an interest in you?," Kim asked desperately.

"Ummm…to be honest, no. But so what? I've got eyes for only one girl, and her name's Kim Possible," Ron replied.

"Ron, you say that now, but what happens when some hot babe like Yori or Bonnie comes batting her eyelashes at you? I'm not that pretty and maybe you'll see me standing next to one of them and be like, 'What did I ever see in Kim? She's way prettier and she can cook and she's got boobs twice as big'," Kim let all of her insecurities bubble to the surface and spill out in a rush.

Ron just stared at her incredulously for a few seconds. He couldn't believe she was actually self conscious. He still considered himself extremely lucky to be her boyfriend. He finally answered her, "Okay, Kim, first of all, I would never, ever just leave you, **especially **for someone like Bonnie. I've known you since Pre-K. That's like, what, 14 years? You think I'm just gonna let 14 years wash down the drain because I see another pretty face? Second of all, I wouldn't care if you looked like the lunch lady, I'd still love you just as much as I do now. Third of all, Kim I don't care that you can't cook. We can't all be good at everything, even you, Kim Possible. Besides that just reinforces my belief that we were made for each other. You can't cook, I can. I couldn't do a one handed triple back flip to save my life, you can. The list goes on and on. We complete each other…And last, how could you possibly think that you're not absolutely beautiful!!!!????" Ron exclaimed.

"Ron," Kim said tears once again coming to her eyes, "How can you think I'm pretty, when I'm standing next to Bonnie with her D-cups or Yori with her exotic Japanese look **and** D-cups…"

"Kim, I don't want a freaking playboy bunny for a girlfriend! I want you!" Ron interrupted, "You're Kim Possible, you can do anything! You fear nothing! So lets get to the bottom of these insecurities of yours. There's absolutely nothing wrong with a B-cup, KP! In fact, I prefer it. Yes, Bonnie does beat you in that one thing, but you've got her hands down on everything else! We'll start from the top and work our way to the bottom. Hair: you've got gorgeous long soft red hair that smells like strawberries. Bonnie's got plain brown hair, that's cut into the latest style but nothing special otherwise. Eyes: There's absolutely no contest there. You've got beautiful big green eyes that make emeralds look pale while Bonnie's eyes are the color of murky pond water. Lips: well I don't actually know what Bonnie's lips taste like, but I do know that nothing can beat yours. As for the rest of your body, you're just right. You're not stick skinny and anorexic yet you're still thin, and you've got muscles in all the right places yet you're the farthest thing from manly looking there is! You've got the tightest, roundest, cutest butt in the country, probably in the world! You've got long, shapely legs that are to die for, and cute little feet that are extremely fun to tickle. You're captain of the cheerleading squad, not Bonnie, the director of the prom committee, not Bonnie, and student council president, not Bonnie. Not to mention you save the world on a daily basis. Without you, Bonnie wouldn't even be alive to taunt you. No one would be. Everyone has you to thank for the fact that they're even able to enjoy life. Kim, you're the most beautiful, nicest, bravest, smartest girl in the school! How could you possibly think you don't measure up to BONNIE?"

Kim sat in shocked silence for a moment, before throwing her arms around Ron and squeezing the life out of him.

"Ron you are the sweetest boyfriend in the world! How in the heck did you, in the space of ten minutes, make me go from feeling like a worthless peace of crap to the most loved person in the word? Oh my god, Ron! You're honestly the only person I know who knows exactly what to say to make me feel better! I love you so much it hurts sometimes," she confessed before turning in his lap to kiss him passionately.

There's no need to mention that they stayed in that car for a good half hour before they finally headed home.


	4. Poolside Bet

I just wat to say thanks again for all of those who wrote reviews for me! I really appreciate it!

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"Here, try this one," Monique told Kim. It was a Saturday and they'd been shopping at the mall all day while Brick, Felix, and Ron played video games at Brick's house. He had the 'ultimate gaming system' according to Ron. Later they were supposed to go swimming in Brick's pool, and Monique was currently pushing Kim to get a new, more revealing bikini. Monique held up a barely there white bikini for Kim to try on.

"Have you lost your mind?" Kim cried, "I'm not wearing that! You'll be able to see everything once I get wet!"

"That's kind of the point," Monique smiled slyly at Kim's shocked expression.

"No," Kim stated firmly after a moment.

"Uggghhh. Fine," Monique said and instead held up a pretty green bikini. She hadn't really expected Kim to go for the white one anyway. She just liked pulling her leg, "How about this one instead? Seems more your style."

"Okay, hand it over," Kim replied. Monique threw it over the door as Kim stepped into the Club Banana fitting room. She slipped into it and stared at herself critically in the full length mirror. She had to admit, it showed off her body perfectly. It hugged every curve of her body and showed off her flat taut stomach without giving away too much. The rich green color matched her eyes perfectly and seemed to make them sparkle and glow while setting her hair aflame. She turned around and saw that it also accentuated her butt expertly. She smiled to herself, imagining Ron's reaction. She stepped out of the dressing room somewhat self-consciously.

Monique could only gape as she stared at her best girlfriend. "OMG! You look uuhh-mazing girl!" she squealed and Kim couldn't help but smile, "I'm so jealous! I'd give anything to have your flat abs and tight butt!"

"Well, I guess we're even in the jealousy department because I sure as hell wouldn't mind having your bust line," Kim proclaimed, gesturing towards her b-cups. But she was just joking now that she knew Ron preferred her more modest cup size.

"Oh please girl. You have a kickin bod and you know it! You are so getting that suit!" Monique exclaimed, and Kim knew that even if she didn't agree, Monique would make her buy it anyway.

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Ron was running through a dark alley. Shadows loomed on either side of him and the sound of his feet pounding against the concrete was magnified by the complete silence surrounding him. Tiny beads of sweat began to poor down his face as he risked a look behind him. Seeing nothing, he quickened his pace and faced forward again. THWAAP! He slammed into something hard as rock. He was knocked to the ground and looked up to see a solid zombie standing above him. He gazed at his surroundings and noticed that there were a dozen or so zombies closing in on him, arms reaching out to grope him. He lifted up his sword, trying desperately to fend them off. He was wearing out quickly and knew the end was near. He was battling with a groaning zombie in front of him when he felt a hard hit to the back of his head. He turned around dazedly. All he saw was a rotted fist before he blacked out.

GAME OVER flashed on the screen as Ron cried, "Oh man!"

"Haha!" Felix cried, "You still haven't beaten my high score!"

"Stupid controller," Ron grumbled. He was sitting on the floor of Brick's living room with his back propped up against the couch.

"My turn!" cried Brick, snatching the controller from Ron's hands.

"Hello, handsome, handsomer, and handsomest," a voice called from the front door.

They all turned to see Kim walking in the doorway, arms full of shopping bags and followed shortly by Monique.

"Hey KP!" Ron's face lit up at the sight of his girlfriend, "What'd you get?"

Kim sat all of her shopping bags down on Brick's table before heading towards the couch. "Oh, clothes and stuff," she vaguely replied. She bent down to give Ron a kiss on the cheek before placing herself behind him on the couch. Her fingers began to run themselves through Ron's golden hair as Monique came to sit next to Brick.

"Zombie Mayhem again?" Kim asked.

"Yeah," Ron replied, tilting his head back to smile up at her lovingly, "I'm not even trying and I've already kicked some major Felix butt. I'm bored as hell."

"Whatever, dude," Felix scoffed, "You so know I'm the superior gamer."

"And," Ron continued, ignoring Felix, "I'm in need of a proper hello kiss from my badical GF to excite things up a bit."

Then, to Kim's surprise, Ron effortlessly reached up behind his head, grabbed her around the waist, and lifted her up and over his head to sit her in his lap. She couldn't help but give a little surprised gasp.

"Geez, Ron," Kim said, "How in the heck did you do that?"

"What? You only way like a hundred and five pounds and I can bench press at least 170!" Ron exclaimed, jokingly flexing his muscles. But to Kim, it was no joke. Where as before it would have been kind of funny, now it really did show off his muscles which Kim couldn't help but think were extremely sexy.

"Anyway. I didn't pull you down here to talk about my mad muscles," Ron said slyly. He encircled her in his arms before pulling her head to his and giving her a long tender kiss. He felt the familiar dizzy sensation wash over him as he held her against him, and she responded accordingly, pressing her body even tighter into his.

They were finally forced to pull apart due to the fact that they still needed to breath. Kim settled her head down on Ron's chest and kissed right below his jawbone, relaxing in his firm yet gentle grip.

It was Ron's turn to stroke Kim's glorious red hair with one hand while the other wrapped around her, holding her to him.

"Hmmm, mmmm," Monique cleared her throat.

"Problem, Mon?" Kim calmly asked, perfectly relaxed.

"I would just like to get out to the pool before the sun goes down waiting for you two to stop fondling each other," she replied.

"Yeah, way to ruin the moment," Ron joked.

"Oh crap!" Felix exclaimed, looking at his watch, "I'm late to go meet Tara! Sorry guys I gotta run!"

"Just try to keep your hands to yourself lover boy!" Monique called as he ran out the front door.

Felix and Tara had been dating for about 3 weeks, and things were starting to heat up between them. Even though Kim thought they made a cute couple, she wasn't sure if their relationship would last. It was almost purely physical because Tara and Felix had practically nothing in common. Regardless, she was rooting for both of her friends anyway because, from what she'd seen, they made each other happy.

Kim got up off of Ron and turned around to help him to his feet.

"Well let's go change into our swimsuits girl," Monique proposed, giving Kim a sly smile that did not go unnoticed by Ron or Brick.

"Hey what's with the smile?" Ron asked her suspiciously.

Monique's face was the picture of innocence as she asked, "What smile?"

"The one you just gave Kim?"

"I don't know what you're talking about. She didn't give me a smile," Kim answered with a smile of her own, "Paranoid much?"

"No! I just saw her give you a funny smile!" he said exasperated.

"Sorry Ron. You must be seeing things," Monique told him, with a dismissing wave of her hand.

"Ugh! Fine," he exclaimed, admitting defeat. There was no way he was getting anything out of them if they were planning something.

"We'll go change too," Brick said heading towards his bedroom.

"See you boys out at the pool," Kim sing-songed before slipping into the bathroom.

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"It's perfect," Brick pronounced after dipping his toe into the pool water. The water was a clear blue, matching the color of the sky spectacularly. It was also the perfect temperature; cold enough it was refreshing, but not so cold that you got goose bumps.

Ron responded by running past him and cannonballing into the water. Brick gave a little shrug before following his example.

Once they broke the surface, Brick turned to Ron, a serious expression on his face.

"Hey, Ron…Can I ask you a question?" Brick asked.

"Fire away," Ron responded while floating lazily on his back.

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to or anything," Brick said nervously. Ron just nodded his head okay and Brick continued, "I was wondering if…uh…you and Kim have…um…you know…"

"Not following here."

"If you and Kim have…um…well…had…um…had sex yet?" Brick stammered.

That got Ron's full attention. He jerked up out of his lazy position and shot Brick a suspicious look, "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I've kinda been thinking about…you know…me and Monique, and I was wondering if…uh…you and Kim have done It yet," Brick struggled to find the right words as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck.

"Well, no. We haven't," Ron answered, "but that doesn't mean we haven't done _anything _yet. We're just trying to save the actual deed until we get married. Ya know?"

"Yeah."

"So what brought this up?" Ron's curiosity was officially piqued.

"Well I think Monique and I are ready, but…I don't know…we've only been together for about 4 months. I mean, I feel like I'm ready but…that's not that long," Brick explained.

"Well you guys have been going out for as long as KP and I have been, and you seemed kinda surprised when I told you we hadn't done It," Ron reasoned.

"Yeah, but Monique and I haven't been best friends for 14 years, either," Brick said.

"Touche,"

"So…what do you think I should do?" Brick asked.

"You should talk to Monique about it," Ron replied quickly. He was feeling very wise, giving Brick advice on girls. In fact he had to suppress a giggle at the bizarreness of it, "Kim and I have, and that's how we decided we were going to try and wait until we get married. But that doesn't mean you have to feel guilty every time you think about it or get…um…an urge. I mean, she's still you're girlfriend and, chances are, she feels the same way."

"Good," Brick said relieved, "So you have those…urges…too?"

"Sha. I don't know how you couldn't with KP as your girlfriend. She gets this evil little glint in her eye whenever she gets turned on, and her voice gets all husky and… anyway, sometimes I don't think I'm going to be able to wait. Sometimes I just want to say 'screw it' and do it right here and now."

Ron turned to look at Brick, but found that his eyes were directed to the doorway instead of him. Ron also noticed that his mouth was absolutely gaping open. Ron followed Brick's gaze to the patio…and felt as though he'd been sucker punched in the gut.

"Kind of like right now," he whispered, awestruck.

Kim stood there saucily, hands on hips. The evil glint Ron had just been talking about was currently present in her eyes, and a smile tugged at her lips at Ron and Brick's reaction.

She was wearing her new bathing suit…and looked like a goddess come to life. Brick and Ron could only stare, minds blank.

"Dude," Ron whispered to Brick, not once taking his eyes off Kim, "You're supposed to be looking at Monique."

"Uh…right," Brick whispered back. But his eyes kept involuntarily traveling back to Kim's sexy physique.

Ron let his eyes travel slowly up her body, drinking in every ounce of her. Her cute little feet, her shapely toned legs, her soft defined hips, dipping into her tiny waist with her adorable belly button, roaming up her flat as a pancake abs, her perky chest with her slight cleavage, her long graceful neck, her soft full pink lips, her tiny ski-slope nose, her sly green eyes accentuated by the color of the swimsuit, and her gorgeous fiery red locks falling sexily in front of one eye.

Monique walked over to Brick, who was currently doing the same thing that Ron was, eye-raping Kim. She actually didn't feel all that jealous; she was satisfied knowing that she'd done her job well.

"Monique, you hooked Kim _up_," Brick complimented, still awestruck by Kim, "I mean, I knew she was hot, but she's always been to shy to show it before. Probably a good thing too, or Ron would have some serious competition, not that he already doesn't."

"Have to agree with you there, big boy," Monique admitted, "Must be all the world saving she does. She says she does at least 20 hours of intense training a week, not including missions. She's started to take Ron with her too, that's why he's bulked up a bit. I don't get jealous easily, but I know I'd give anything to have her butt and abs."

"She's hot Monique, but you are too…just in a different way. You do know that I wouldn't have you any other way?" Brick asked, "Well I guess I wouldn't mind you with Possible's ass."

Monique looked at Brick and saw that he was smiling teasingly.

"Oh you!" she said, trying to dunk him, but unable to because 1) he was too strong for her to ever force him anywhere and 2) she couldn't swim and was a little afraid of the water.

Meanwhile, Ron continued to stare at Kim as she sauntered over to him, hips swaying enticingly.

"Eyes Ronnie," she reminded him with a sexy smile.

Ron quickly locked his chocolate brown eyes onto her bright green ones, "KP…you look….uh…wow…amazing doesn't even begin to describe it…wow. I'd say beautiful, but that's not even close either. Gorgeous, maybe?"

Kim smiled at him, "Thanks, Ronnie. You're so sweet." She bent down and game him a soft peck on the lips before sauntering over to the diving board.

Monique was clinging to Brick, "I hate this. I'm afraid to let the water go over my head."

"You just got to do it," Brick told her, "It's not gonna hurt you. Here, let's go under. On the count of three. 1...2..."

"No, no, no!" Monique screamed, squeezing Brick as tight as she could. Brick just sighed, but didn't take her under .

Ron caught a secretive smile from Kim and quickly followed her to the diving board. They sneakily crept up to the ladder without making a sound, which was easy for them considering they had to do it on a daily basis. Ron gave Kim a sly look before climbing up the ladder. He gasped a little as he felt a sharp pinch on his butt cheek, and turned around to see Kim's grinning face looking up at him. The mock scolding look he gave her did nothing to stop her from giggling silently. Ron was trying not to laugh too, but more because of what they were about to do than Kim pinching his butt.

They heard him before they saw him.

"CANNONBALL!" Ron shouted, as he ran the length of the diving board and plunged into the pool.

Monique only had time to scream as a huge splash hit her in the face full-on. She came up coughing, and Brick immediately lifted her high enough to catch her breath.

"STOPPABLE!" she screeched, "Once I'm back on dry land, you are so dead!"

Ron was just laughing hysterically and looking up at the diving board. Monique followed his gaze just in time to see Kim take a running hop-skip before using all of her leg muscles to bounce high into the air. She twisted and turned her body to do a perfectly executed triple back flip before wrapping her arms around her legs and shouting "Cannonball!" gleefully.

As Kim's body made contact with the water, a much smaller wave splashed over Monique, but it still caused her to sputter and cough up water.

"You two are so dead!" she screamed. She turned angrily to the two to see them trying to hide their giggles behind their hands. Kim swam lazily over to Ron, laughing the whole way.

"Sorry, Mon," Kim apologized, clamping her legs tightly around Ron's waist and her arms around his neck, "But I just couldn't resist."

Ron's body instantly responded to hers and his arms seemed to wrap around her waist of their own accord. "Yeah, won't happen again," Ron grinned.

"You better hope it doesn't, or you two won't live to see tomorrow," Monique threatened.

Kim tried to hide her giggles by burying her head into Ron's neck.

"Uh oh," Brick said, mock angry, "You've made my girlfriend mad. Now you're gonna get it. Kimberly Anne Possible, I hereby challenge you to a race."

"Oh. And what are the stakes?" Kim asked confidently, still in Ron's arms.

"Hmmm…," Brick considered his options, "How about, if I win you have to wear that bikini for the rest of the day, including when we play football later."

"Well…Alright," Kim agreed reluctantly, "But if I win you have to go to Victoria's Secret, buy a thong and bra, and wear them around the mall, screaming 'I'm Brick Flag and I got my ass kicked by a girl!'"

"You drive a hard bargain Possible, but deal," Brick said, after thinking it through. They shook on it, each with a huge confident smile on their face.

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"So you're seriously doing this?" Ron asked, eyebrows raised.

"Yep," Brick answered.

Ron gave him a disbelieving look, "You know she's going to kick your ass right? She used to be the best swimmer on the swim team before she had to quit so she had enough time to do missions."

Brick just shrugged, a little less confident than before. They were going to have a swimming race. They had to dive off of the diving board, swim down to the very far opposite end of the pool, and then swim back. Whoever got done first, won.

Kim walked up to them by the side of the diving board right at that moment.

"Ready to lose, big boy?" she asked Brick smugly, hugging Ron around the waist.

Hearing what Kim was saying, Monique walked up to them and replied, "You're the one who's gonna lose, Miss I Can Do Anything. There's no way my man is gonna run through the mall in a bra and thong."

"You said it yourself Mon; I can do anything. That includes beating the Hulk in a race," Kim smiled good-naturedly.

"Well I've got the best cheer squad ever to cheer me on," Brick said, gesturing towards Monique.

"Puh-lease. First of all, Monique is just one person, therefore she's not a cheer **squad**. And second of all, I've got the former Middleton Mad Dog to cheer me on. There's no way I can lose," Kim boasted. She looked back at Ron and gave him a huge grin, which he returned.

"You just wait Kim," Brick warned, "I'm going to sneak up on you, and get you good when you least expect it."

Kim shook her head no and was just about to reply when Brick, gently but firmly picked her up and held her above his head effortlessly. She gave a surprised scream as Brick, as softly as he could, threw her into the pool.

It all seemed to happen in a split second. She came up splashing, just in time to see Brad rush through the gate, to her and everyone else's complete surprise. Seeing Kim sputtering, he gracefully dove into the pool and quickly swam towards her. Scooping her up, he threw her over his shoulder, and preceded to swim her back to the edge. He climbed out with her still draped over his shoulder and set her down tenderly on the concrete.

"B…Brad?," Kim asked disbelievingly, "What are you doing?"

Brad kneeled down beside her with concern and confusion shining in his eyes, "Um…Saving you from drowning."

"Brad, I wasn't drowning. Brick was just joking around and threw me in," Kim explained.

Ron had watched the scene take place before him with his mouth agape. Once he finally came out of his shock, he shoved Brad aside and helped Kim to her feet.

"Oh. I…uh, thought you were drowning," Brad said uncomfortably.

"Why in the world would you think that?" Ron asked with his hand protectively around Kim's waist.

"Well, I was walking by and heard a girl scream. I just ran in here to see what was wrong, saw Kim sputtering in the pool, and jumped in to save her," Brad explained as best he could.

Nobody knew what to say. All five of them just stood there, staring at each other for a few moments.

"So um….what **did** happen?" asked Brad, rubbing the back of his neck in a nervous gesture very similar to Ron's. He turned to look at Kim…and did a double take. Ron noted that he'd obviously noticed that she was in her new bikini. He instantly went into jealous/protective boyfriend mode.

"Well…um…Kim and Brick were about to race down to the end of the pool and back," Monique told him when no one else answered, "They were just talking smack to each other and joking around so Brick threw her in."

"Why in the world would he do something like that?" Brad asked, giving Brick a hard glare, "She could have been hurt."

"Brad, I'm fine," Kim responded, "He was just joking around, and I've been through way worse."

"Oh. Well I still say he took it too far," Brad relented at Kim's assurance that she was fine, "Would it be okay if I watched the race?"

"Um," Monique answered for her friends once again, "Sure."

"If you don't mind my asking, what are the stakes?" Brad asked, growing more comfortable.

Kim was also back to her usual self, "If, I win Brick has to run around the mall in a bra and thong screaming 'I got my ass kicked by a girl!'"

Brad put on a huge grin. "Boy would I love to see that," he teased Brick, "But what happens if Brick wins?"

"Not gonna happen," Kim declared, smiling.

"When I win, Kim has to wear her new bikini for the rest of the day, including when we play football later," Brick shot back.

"Wow. Sorry Kim, but I've gotta admit, I'm rooting for Brick on this one," Brad said, smiling.

"Fine, traitor. I don't need you anyway. My Ronnie's got my back," Kim put her arm around Ron's waist and his arm went around her shoulders. She smiled at Brad to let him know that she was just teasing.

"Well then, let's get this race started," Ron declared, "The faster we do this, the faster Kim can win and we can start our football game!"

Kim chuckled and Brick smirked as they both made their way to the diving board. Rufus was already waiting on the railing when they both climbed up the ladder that, thankfully was wide enough for the both of them to fit on standing side by side. The walked forward to the edge of the board and stood at the ready until the little mole rat put both of his paws up into the air and held them for a long moment.

Finally he swung them down quickly and Brick exploded into action and dove straight into the water. Kim however, rushed behind her, back towards the ladder and upon reaching it, turned around. She took a deep breath and ran the length of the board before coming to the edge and using every ounce of her leg muscles to jump, jump, _**jump**_, not high into the air like when she'd done the cannonball, but out horizontally in a dive so graceful, so athletic and cat-like that it had the three watching humans and naked mole rat completely and totally awestruck.

She quickly overlapped Brick while still in the air, and she didn't even hit the water until she was already three fourths of the way across the pool. She let herself glide to the edge of the pool before doing a swim turn/flip underwater and once again used all of her leg muscles to push off the side of the pool in a split second. She was half way back to the other side of the pool before she even had to start swimming while Brick was still swimming with strong powerful strokes towards the edge so he could turn around and swim back. She touched the other side of the pool just as Brick was turning around to swim after her.

Rufus squealed and Ron yelled "Booyah!" at the top of his lungs while punching his fist high into the air. Rufus scampered quickly down the railing and ladder and jumped to land on Kim's shoulder. He used his little paw to raise Kim's fist in the air and declare "Winner!" with a squeak.

Kim smiled at Rufus and gave him a kiss on the side of his head before turning to Brick and saying in a sweet little girl voice, "Hope you don't mind a little breeze, Brickie."

If he hadn't already had Monique, Brick had to admit that **that** voice coming out of **that **body in **that** swimsuit, which was soaking wet and clinging to her like an extra layer of skin, would have driven him to the brink of unconsciousness. As it was, the other two young men **were **driven wild, but only one could actually act on their feelings….and he did. Ron enveloped Kim in a huge hug before hoisting her up onto his shoulders and shouting "Winner!" as loud as he could.

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I'm excited for the next chapter. It's going to be really good. Anyway, stay tuned and I'll have it up ASAP!


	5. Jealousy

"Brick. Do I need to worry about you and Kim?"

"What?" was Brick's startled reply.

"You and Kim," Ron continued, "Are you…how do you….do you have a crush on her?"

The two of them were, at the moment, alone in Brick's living room. Ron had decided that this was an opportune moment to talk to Brick about a certain nagging feeling he'd been having lately. He had thought about what he was going to say for quite a while before he just decided to be blunt about it and ask the question that he had pushed to the back of his mind for a while now.

"Well, umm…" Brick couldn't think of the right answer quick enough so instead he went with the honest one, "Yes."

Time seemed to slow as Ron's eyes bugged out of his head and he took in a sharp intake of breath.

"But, it's not like you think," Brick quickly continued, "I do love her….as a friend. But I can't lie to you Ron; I also have this kind of…um…crush on her."

He looked over at Ron who continued to stare blankly back at him. He took this to mean that he needed to explain further.

"Don't get me wrong. I would never make a move or anything. I know she's totally in love with you," Brick reassured him.

"B-but what about Monique?" Ron couldn't help but ask.

"I love her as more than a friend and I would never risk our relationship to try and see if Kim returns any of my feelings. I'm really sorry Ron, but sometimes I just can't help it. I've had this little crush on her every since she saved me from Adrena Lynn. Hanging out with her this summer has just intensified my feelings for her," Brick tried to explain, "How am I supposed to help it? She's **Kim Possible **for god's sake! She's beautiful, sexy, sweet, athletic, smart, outgoing, and she can do anything! It's impossible not to have at least a tiny crush on her. I mean, didn't you when you were just her best friend?"

Ron thought about it for a minute and had to admit that Brick was right. "Yeah, but I didn't have the guts to say anything until the whole Diablo fiasco," Ron confessed.

"See what I mean? And while I **do** love Monique, I see Kim fawning all over you, and I can't help but get jealous and wonder what it would be like to have **the** Kim Possible running her hands through my hair and buying little bikinis just for me to see her in and giving me little kisses for no reason," Brick's eyes slightly glazed over as he seemed to get lost in his own mind.

"Um….Brick?" Ron asked. Brick snapped out of his daydreams and swiveled his head in Ron's direction, "Sorry but I have to say this. Standard boyfriend routine. If you ever try anything with her I can and will beat you to a pulp." There was a cold hard steel in Ron's eyes as he said those words, and Brick got the message loud and clear. Brick was much bigger than Ron, but he wasn't stupid. He knew that Ron was a much better fighter than him.

"I understand and I would never try anything," Brick promised, "But I'm glad I finally got that out in the open."

"Me too," and Ron's hard face turned into a warm smile. How convenient that Kim and Monique should walk in right at that moment, fully dressed and smiling.

Kim practically skipped over to Ron, ruffling Brick's hair on the way, and plopped down on top of him. Even though she was sitting on his lap, he was still just a little taller than her and she was just about to reach up and give him a kiss when he surprised her instead. One of his arms wrapped under her to hold her shoulders while the other went above her and around her waist to give him leverage to lower her onto the couch and proceed to give her dozens of kisses all over her face. She started to giggle uncontrollably but he wouldn't relent. Finally, after much kissing and giggling, Ron placed one final loving kiss on Kim's forehead before sitting up, taking her up with him. Kim's head instinctively went to Ron's chest, and her arms wrapped around his torso as his came down around her waist and shoulders. Monique shook her head at their lovey-dovey display before getting comfortable in Brick's lap.

"So Brick," Kim said, turning to face him, face still flushing prettily, "Thanks to Monique, I've decided to let you off the hook."

"Not that I'm complaining but, why?" Brick confusedly asked.

"I felt bad for you is all," Kim shrugged.

"Does this mean you're gonna wear the bikini the rest of the day?" Brad asked as he walked into the room after having used the bathroom.

"No," Kim glared at him, "I'm just trying to be nice."

"Well, thanks," Brick said beaming.

Brad walked fully into the room and sat down next to Kim and Ron.

"So, Kim," Brad asked turning to face her on Ron's lap, "Where did you learn to swim like that? You were awesome!"

Kim blushed. Ron glared. "Thanks. Umm…well I used to be on the swim team."

"Why aren't you on it anymore?" Brad asked, ignoring Ron's heated gaze.

"I had to quit something if I wanted to have enough time to do missions and since swim team was my least favorite of all my activities, I quit it," Kim explained, her head never leaving Ron's chest.

"Well you have a killer body. If I were you, I'd show it off more," Brad complimented with an exaggerated wag of his eyebrows as he gave Kim the once over.

Ron felt his face getting hot, and he tried to burn a hole through Brad with his glare. Ron also noticed that Kim had stiffened in his arms.

"I don't need to 'show it off more'," Kim said, and even though her hands never left their place behind Ron's back, the air quotes were obvious in her voice, "I've got a boyfriend, a very cute one at that, and I don't want to show off for anyone but him."

Ron's gaze was now triumphant as he smiled at Brad.

"Yeah I understand," Brad's head dropped dejectedly with his words, "I used to have this girlfriend in Go City, and she was almost just like you. You remind me so much of her."

"Really? Did you guys have to break up or something when you moved?" Kim asked with a voice full of sympathy. She didn't know what her and Ron would do if one of them ever had to move.

"Actually, we broke up about a month before I moved," Brad admitted. His voice was laced with a deep pain.

"Why did you guys break up?" Kim asked, eyebrows knitted together in curious concern.

"I kinda broke up with her," Brad said before taking a huge breath, and hesitating as though what he was about to say was just too painful to relive. Kim and Monique had both lifted their heads up off of their respective boyfriends chests and now listened with rapt attention.

"She meant the world to me, and I made sure I told her that every day. We were so happy together….that is….until…" and at this Brad choked out a sob, "until…"

"What!?" Kim and Monique said in unison, moving closer to hear him more clearly.

"Until I caught her," another choke, "in bed with another guy," sob, "my best friend, Steven. I walked in on them in her room. They both betrayed me, went behind my back. I had given her my whole heart on a freakin silver platter!" Brad managed to choke out between sobs, "and she crushed it. She broke my heart."

At this Brad 'broke down', sobbing into his hands. It was too bad no one could see the small sinister smile on his face as he covered it with his hands. Kim and Monique instantly flanked him on either side, each putting a hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him. Kim's heart went out to him. She could only image how crushed she'd be if Ron cheated on her.

"Ooohhh…it's okay," Kim reassured him, she rubbed his shoulder after his passionate proclamation, "She obviously wasn't worth it if she didn't realize what a great guy she had."

"No! She's right! I'm just a no good loser that gets cheated on. And she did it with my best friend too!" he wailed in agony, "I must be the most naïve loser in the world!"

"Shhhh! Don't say that. Any girl would be lucky to have you," Kim told him, eyes locked on his.

"Y…y…you really mean that?" Brad asked, hope in his tear-filled eyes as he looked at Kim.

"Of course," she declared, confidently, "You're a great guy and I know there's a girl out there for you. You just have to find her."

"Thanks KP," he said, choking out more sobs. Her eyes clouded over, but she decided now was most definitely not the time to reprimand him for using Ron's nickname for her. For some unexplainable reason, she got mad when anyone but Ron called her KP. Brad interrupted her thoughts by pulling her into a tight, smothering hug and burying his head deep into her lush red hair as he cried. Kim was shocked speechless at the sudden contact but just let him hold her close as he cried into her hair.

Ron meanwhile, was penetrating Brad with a stare so full of hatred that, had he seen it, would have sent him running off into the nearest lake. He looked over at Brick, who he noted was also staring daggers at Brad.

Alright, Ron had had just about enough. Seeing Brad crying into Kim's beautiful long flowing red locks, sent him into a homicidal rage. Brad's hands were around Kim's waist and shoulders, pulling her impossibly tight against him. He was sick of trying to control his temper. He was sick of watching Brad shamelessly hit on Kim, while she remained completely oblivious. It was time for some action.

_NO! STOP! Only I can do that! Kim's beautiful hair! Get your filthy face out of it, horn dog! Only I can do that! Get your nasty hands off of her! That's my KP! You're touching **my** KP!_

Ron had completely lost all control of his emotions. All these thoughts raced through his mind in less than a millisecond, and he let out a low growl. Kim hearing and recognizing the growl right away, turned to face Ron…and she let out a small gasp at just how angry he looked. She'd seen him mad before, but never this angry. No, wait, he wasn't angry. He was furious!

Sensing a confrontation, she immediately tried to pry Brad's arms from around her, but he held fast. "Brad," she said to him, kindly, "You need to let go. This is a little uncomfortable."

Monique had rejoined Brick, and they watched in awe from the couch as Brad refused to let go, and just dug himself deeper into Kim.

Ron thought he could literally feel a thread in him snap. "GET THE F OFF OF HER RIGHT NOW OR I WILL LITERALLY RIP YOU IN HALF!!!!!!!" he screamed at Brad. Everyone in the room jumped out of their skins. They'd never heard Ron raise his voice like that before. Even Rufus looked shocked.

Brad's arms instantly went limp and his face registered his shock. Kim now easily removed them from around her and stood up. She turned to Ron who, now that Kim was out of the way, was quickly advancing on Brad with a murderous look in his eyes, which Kim noticed with surprise were actually a light blue instead of their normal brown.

Ron had raised his fist to punch Brad head on with all his might. But right as his fist was about to impact with Brad's pretty face, it was abruptly stopped.

Surprised, Ron turned around to see what was delaying the punch he so desperately wanted to lay on Brad and saw Kim, straining with all her might to pull his arm down. She had obviously caught it right before it was about to hit Brad.

"Ron, please stop! This isn't you!" she begged, trying to snap some sense into him, but he refused to quit struggling against her.

"Ron, please! Don't! You're scaring me!" Tears were now running down her face as she pleaded desperately with him. He felt the same thread that had snapped earlier within him, reconnect when he saw her tears. He was scaring her. He didn't want to scare her. He felt as though he was slammed back into his body, and he looked at the position he was in. This was all wrong. Kim wasn't supposed to be scared of him. He was supposed to be the one who was there for her when she was scarred of something else. His eyes were slowly turning back to their normal brown color.

Feeling as though she was making progress, she let go of his arm. It stayed where it was and didn't go back to try to resume it's former activities. She hugged him from behind and dug her face in between his shoulder blades. "Please," she whispered, squeezing him tighter.

This seemed to instantly snap him out of it. He lowered his arm and his eyes returned fully back to normal as the last of the blue glow was chased away.

Kim breathed a sigh of relief as she felt him relax. She released him before grabbing his hand and pulling him out into the hallway, leaving a terrified Brad, and an extremely confused and amazed Brick and Monique in their wake.

Once they reached the hallway and shut the door behind them, Kim turned to Ron. "What happened back there?" she asked him, but her voice was filled with curiosity and concern, not accusation like he'd been expecting.

"I don't really know. I just….lost it," Ron admitted, "I mean, I saw Brad dig his face into your hair, and then he was pulling you against him, and…and…mine!"

"What are you talking about?" Kim asked.

"KP, I know this is gonna sound really jerk-ish, but you're my girlfriend. Mine! And he was holding you. Mine!" Ron tried to put his feelings into words, but they weren't coming out right. Oh man, he sucked at expressing his feelings!

"Ron," Kim said evenly, "You don't own me."

"I know. I know," Ron told her in a voice full of compassion, "But I'm just trying to describe how I felt and, when he was holding you, and your hair, and I got all protective."

"Care to explain in a little more detail, please and thank you?" Kim asked, eyes flashing emerald sparks.

"Okay…um…let's see…is there a 'spot' on my body, that you consider yours?" Kim stared at him blankly before he continued, " This sounds totally insane….You know. A spot that makes you feel better…just being there."

Kim's eyes suddenly filled with understanding, "Yeah. I get what you're saying. You're chest. And right in the hollow of your collarbone. It's where I put my head whenever I'm upset."

"See what I mean? You're hair is like that with me. I always dig my face into it whenever I need…well, comfort…..or something. I don't know!" Ron threw his hands up in exasperation, "Okay now imagine someone you don't want to see me with…"

"Yori."

"Okay. Imagine Yori comes up to me, crying, and she puts her head on my chest or digs her face into the hollow of my collarbone and pulls me tight against her. She's balling her eyes out and she won't let me go and she's in 'your' spot," Ron tried to explain.

Kim gave a little growl just thinking about it.

"That's how I felt. I saw him dig his head into your hair and pull you tight against him, and I immediately freaked because that's 'my' spot," Ron finished, out of breath. He felt as though all the energy had been drained from him and he wondered if he made any sense at all.

"Oh my god, Ronnie. I'm so sorry," Kim apologized and her hand came up to cup his cheek as she stared deep into his loving brown eyes. Imagining Yori hugging Ron with her head on Ron's chest, very nearly sent her into a homicidal rage also. She couldn't believe she had put Ron through that, "I didn't even think. If I had known it was gonna hurt you like that, I never would've…"

"Shhhh….KP. I know. And I'm sorry for freaking out and scaring you," Ron also apologized and his hands went around her waist. He felt his stomach twist into knots at the thought of those bright emerald eyes looking up at him in fear, like they had when he'd been about to lay out Brad. Looking at them now, the were filled only with love. He pulled her close and buried his face into her soft haven of red hair and breathed in deeply as he felt her arms snake up and wrap around his neck. Her face immediately dug into his collarbone, seeking comfort and safety.

"No big," Kim reassured him, but he noticed her voice was choked and began to feel a wet spot on his shoulder.

"KP, please don't cry. I'm so sorry," Ron begged, pulling away from her to gaze down into her tear-filled eyes.

"No, Ron. It's not that," Kim tried to explain, but couldn't, "I'm not mad at you. There's just so many emotions running through me right now, and I'm a little confused. God, I'm such a baby."

Ron decided the time was right to use his weapon. He quickly leaned down and placed a gentle little kiss right below Kim's right ear. Just as he'd expected, she melted into mush in his arms, every nerve in her body shot. He scooped her up easily just as she said, "Ron! I would have been fine! You didn't need to use the spot!"

"Kimmie, you just need to relax. I'm gonna take you home. I've put you through a lot today, and it's time for you to rest," Ron whispered into her ear as he carried her into Brick's living room.

"Hey Brick," he said, "I'm taking Kim home, long day. We'll have to reschedule the football game for tomorrow. See you!" he called as he walked out the front door, carrying Kim in his arms and not even looking at Brad.

Everyone just stared in shocked silence as they watched him walk out the door carrying a limp Kim.

He placed Kim tenderly into the passenger seat of her car and drove her home as quickly as possible. He was glad that there were no other cars in the driveway. That meant that Mr. & Mrs. Dr. P weren't home yet, and he could take Kim in without complication. He got out and scooped her up into his arms once again before carrying her up to the front door. He reached under a rock to find a hidden key to unlock her door. He made sure to place the key back under the rock before taking Kim up to her room.

He set her down gently on the bed and took off her shoes so she could fall asleep. She was practically sleeping already, just barely conscious after Ron's kiss to her spot.

"Ron," she mumbled as he got up to leave the room, "Will you sleep with me?"

He hesitated a moment. What if Mr. Dr. P saw them sleeping together on her bed? He looked into her pleading emerald eyes, and his worries instantly melted away, "Sure, KP," he smiled, unable to refuse her request. He took off his shoes before laying down behind her and spooning himself into her back. They fit together perfectly.

His arm came down around her waist and pulled her into him. His other arm went under her neck to act as a pillow. He could already feel himself dropping off to sleep as he pulled the covers up over them. Judging by Kim's even breathing, he guessed that she was already fast asleep. "I love you………so much," he whispered into her ear before kissing it tenderly. Getting comfortable, he snuggled into her and let the smell of her and her room fill his nose, the sound of her soft, even breathing fill his ears, and the feel of her tiny warm body pressed against his fill his senses as he drifted off to sleep.


	6. Disaster Strikes

I just want to say once again that Kim Possible and friends belong to Disney. Brad belongs to me! I want to thank xStarsandHeartsx, Solarstone, CajunBear73, and KimStoppable for their helpful reviews!

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The next day, disaster struck in the form of a phone call.

Poor unsuspecting Ron made the mistake of answering his home phone when it rang one afternoon. He was spending some quality time with Kim since his parents wouldn't be home until later that night. They were in the middle of a heavy make-out session when the mood was shattered to pieces by the sharp ringing of the kitchen phone.

Ron reluctantly removed his lips from Kim's.

"Ronnie, let it ring," Kim pleaded, eyes half lidded and lips puckered.

"I really **really** want to KP, but what if it's important?" Ron's eyes widened as he had a horrible thought, "KP! What if it's your dad checking up on us, and then I don't answer? He's gonna freak out and send me to a black hole! Then I'll never get to kiss you again!"

He jumped up and sprinted to the phone as fast as his legs would take him.

"Roooooon!" Kim whined, slumping down on the couch. She folded her arms over her chest and waited grumpily for Ron to get back.

This lasted for about a minute before she got impatient and walked into the kitchen to see if it really was her dad on the phone.

Ron was just hanging up the phone with his back to her when she walked into the kitchen.

"Who was it, Ron?" Kim asked curiously.

Ron didn't answer right away. He turned toward her with an ashen face and desperate eyes. He swayed as though he was about to pass out.

"RON!" Kim exclaimed, running over to him, "What in the world happened?"

She held out a hand to steady him as he tried to spit out the words. "Tha…..that was Sensei," Ron whispered in a barely audible voice, "I….I have to go to Yamanouchi for a….for a…."

"For a what, Ron?" Kim demanded.

"For a month," he replied quietly. She felt her heart plummet into her stomach. His eyes finally met hers, and they were filled with a despair that matched her own.

_No, no ,no…not now, please god not now! Our relationship just started. I can't be away from Ron for a month! _Kim thought. Dead silence filled the kitchen. Neither knew what to say.

"What am I gonna do?!!!" Ron exclaimed, causing Kim to jump, "I can't be away from you for a month! I can hardly stay away from you for a few hours!"

"Well….do you….do you _have_ to go?" Kim asked.

"Yeah. Sensei made it clear that there was no option. He said I'd need to use my Monkey Power soon and it has to be honed before it's too late," Ron was practically crying.

"How I come with you?" Kim asked, desperately trying to find some sort of loophole, "They don't have to teach me anything. I could just come for….for moral support or something. Yeah! Moral support!"

"UUUGGGGGHHHHH!" Ron let out a loud soul wrenching moan sob, "I already asked! He told me you are to stay here and that he needs me alone! Alone! NOOOOOOO! I can't do it without you! I can't do anything without you."

"Oh, Ron. You're being a little dramatic, don't you think?" Kim tried to lighten up the mood with a fake laugh, but it came out more like a choked sob. She could feel the waterworks about to start and tried with all her might to hold them back.

Feeling her anguish, he held out his arms to her, and she willingly flung herself into them. He thought and thought and thought as he stood there rocking her back and forth while stroking her silky hair, but there was no way around it. He was gonna have to live without her for a whole month.

"I'm so sorry Kim," Ron whispered into her ear, "I can't think of any alternative."

His only answer was a sniffle. He hated himself at that moment. His girlfriend needed him and he was going to leave her for a whole month.

Then it hit him like a ton of bricks….Brad.

He was going to have to leave her alone with Brad for a month. A MONTH! Who knew what he would try once Ron was out of the picture! He immediately decided that as soon as Kim was out of ear shot, he was calling up Felix, Brick, and all of his other male football buddies. He needed help on this one. He wasn't about to leave Kim alone without anyone to have her back.

"When do you have to leave?" Kim asked, looking up at him with the saddest eyes he'd ever seen. Her voice jolted him out of his thoughts. As he looked down into her eyes, the windows to her soul, all he saw was a deep heart-wrenching despair. He thought he felt his heart crack in two just looking at her. He pulled her into his chest, trying to mesh her body and his. Trying desperately to somehow pull her into him so he could suck all the pain and sadness from her body.

"Tomorrow afternoon," he said into her hair. God, he was going to miss her smell. He sucked in a deep lungful of her strawberry scented shampoo, "But until then, I'm not leaving your side for a second. The next 24 hours are just you and me."

"What about sleep?" Kim murmured into his chest. She could feel his muscles underneath her cheek and once again held back the urge to cry.

"I'm sleeping wherever you're sleeping," Ron declared, "I'm sure our parents will understand, considering the circumstances."

Kim just nodded as she felt a hot tear roll down her cheek. Ron pulled her back just far enough so he could see her face. She saw his face crumple when he saw that she was crying.

"I'm sorry," she sniffled, moving her arm to wipe away the tear.

"Don't be," he grabbed her wrist before she could touch her face and replaced it around his neck.

He bent down slowly and found her lips with his. He then proceeded to give her the softest, gentlest kiss she'd ever experienced in her life. It was so tender, and so different from the steamy make-out sessions they sometimes had. It was as though she were very fragile and he was trying not to break her.

Slowly, oh so tantalizingly slowly, he reached his tongue out to touch her closed lips. His tongue traced the outside of her lips before arriving back to the crevice between her upper and lower lip. He pushed forward gently, and she willingly oppened her mouth so that his tongue could enter. Up and down, up and down his tongue scraped against hers, massaging it gently. She felt herself shudder as a tingle that started from her center, flowed all throughout her body.

She jumped up and wrapped her legs around his waist. His hands instinctively went to cup her butt through her jeans. He walked to the door, kissing her the whole way. Tongues flailed faster, passion grew. She sank her teeth into his bottom lip, pulling and sucking on it as he carried her up the stairs toward his bedroom.

Kicking open his door, he let out a moan as they stumbled onto the bed, never pausing in their advances. He climbed on top of her, kissing her with a passion he hadn't known he'd possessed. His lips moved down to her jaw line, planting light feathery kisses along the sharp bone there. Her head tilted back to give him better access. All the while his hands roamed along her body, feeling every inch of her.

"Oooooh, Ronnie," she moaned as his lips found her ear. The sound managed to get him more aroused than he'd ever been before. He could feel himself jumping at his zipper, wanting release. He moved to the left side of her neck, right where her collerbone connected her shoulder and neck. Her muscles tensed in anticipation and her breathing became shallow. He kissed the spot that only he knew about, and quickly moved up to her ear, breathing into it huskily. The effect he was hoping for happened instantly.

"MMMMMMMMMMM!!!" Kim moaned, eyes rolling into the back of her head. Her body instantly pressed into his as hard as it could. She let out a growl before ripping his shirt off and tossing it with disregard to the floor. Her fingernails dug into him as she clawed at his chest and bit his lip hard, almost drawing blood.

He smiled to himself. She always went all wildcat on him when he kissed that spot. Now was no exception. She peeled her shirt off of her chest and banished it the floor next to Ron's shirt. She smashed her lips into his, trying to suck all the air out of his lungs. His hand went to the back of her head, grabbing a fistful of her long lush hair. He kissed her harder as his other hand wandered down to undo the button on the top of her jeans.

"Yesssssss, Ronnie," she purred into his mouth as he pulled them down her tightened thighs and calves. She kicked them off and onto the floor before he had a chance to pull them all the way off her. Then she ripped his pants off of him.

"OOOOOhhhhh….," she moaned as she felt his lips move from hers down to her shoulder. He reached behind her and she arched her back so he could unclasp her red bra. He peeled it off her and tossed it to the side with the rest of their clothes.

She bit her lip and moaned in pleasure as he began to suck on her skin. He fondled her perky breasts for quite some time before his lips moved down her stomach and his tongue traced the inside of her belly button. This got a surprise reaction from her.

She meowed as her eyes rolled into the back of her head. He couldn't help himself, he went back up for a quick kiss on the lips before returning to her belly button. His tongue left a line of spit as he moved it down over her taught stomach. His fingers traced the inside of her thighs. His first instinct was to rip the red panties off, but he stopped himself. He was going to do this the slow way.

He took his finger and lightly traced the top of her panties before moving down to the lacey part on her leg. He followed the line to the inside of her thigh and came back around onto the other leg. He repeated this process twice before Kim started trembling uncontrollably. He decided it was time for those to come off. He slipped them down her smooth, well toned legs and looked at her, completely naked on his bed.

"Kim," he said huskily, "I know I've said this before, but you are soooooo god damn gorgeous."

Kim just smiled in return, love filling her eyes.

Next to come off were his boxers. Kim, not nearly as patient as him, ripped them off in no time. Now they were both completely naked.

"Kim," Ron asked hesitantly, "Are you sure you want to do this?"

She nodded her head yes, but there was hesitancy in her eyes.

"What if…what if you get pregnant?" Ron asked, "I don't have a condom."

"Ron," Kim said matter-of-factly, "I take birth control."

Ron gasped and looked at her in alarm, "You do?"

"Yeah. My mom started making me take it as soon as we started going on…..more dangerous missions," Kim said, blushing furiously.

"What do dangerous missions have to do with birth control?" Ron asked, truly stumped.

"Ron," Kim said, exasperated, "Dangerous missions as in….Drakken, Monkey Fist, Dementor, Duff Killigan, Junior, Senior, Motor Ed…." At his blank look she sighed, "As in all **male **villains. As in all male villains with powerful weapons that could knock me out. As in all male villains that could…do stuff to me while I was knocked out."

Understanding finally lit up Ron's eyes, followed quickly by disgust, "Gross KP! Bad mental picture! Ewwww!" There was a long pause as his eyes clouded over in worry, "**Have** any villains ever tried to……you know."

Kim, looking ashamed and hesitant, shook her head yes. Ron's face turned deep red in anger, "OH MY GOD! They RAPED you???? Who? Which ones? I swear to god I'm gonna hunt them down and…."

"Ron!" Kim exclaimed, looking up at him finally, "None of them have raped me. I've just…..I've had some really close calls."

"What kind of close calls and why haven't you ever told me!?" he yelled in a frantic rush.

Kim sighed before sitting up, pulling the blanket up over her chest, and preparing to tell the whole story, or stories, in gruesome detail.

_Looks like we're not gonna do It after all. _Ron thought. _If I'm being honest with myself, I don't think either one of us is truly ready to take such a big step anyway. _

"The first time anything sex related happened on a mission was when you couldn't come because you had semesters the next day. Do you remember?" Kim asked.

Ron though for a moment before shaking his head yes, "Yeah. That was the one where you had to stop Monkey Fist from stealing some sort of statue."

"Right," Kim nodded her assent, "Well, when I arrived at the temple where the statue was kept, I was ambushed before I had a chance to do anything. The monkey ninjas shot me in the neck with some sort of dart, and I blacked out. The next thing I knew, I was chained to a wall in his latest layer. My communicator was gone along with all the gadgets I'd had in my pockets….Then Monkey Fist walked into the room." Kim sighed and tried to hold back her tears as she recalled the horrifying event, but her bottom lip continued to quiver. Ron, having already put his boxers back on while he was listening, climbed over to her and pulled her into his lap, leaning back against the headboard. She took a shaky breath before continuing, " He walked over to me and literally ripped my shirt off since I had my hands tied behind my back and he couldn't take it off the regular way. Then he unclasped my bra and lifted it just enough so he could start sucking my…..you know………the whole time I was screaming at him to stop………..but he just wouldn't listen."

By now tears were streaming down her face and Ron kissed away every one. He was the worst boyfriend in the world. This whole time he'd never even known.

"Then, he pulled off his pants and……… I saw……….everything," she whispered, "Are you sure you want to hear the rest? It's pretty gross."

"I want to hear all of it," Ron said determinedly.

"Well, the whole time he was whispering very um…….crude, nasty things to me. And he wouldn't stop kissing me so I couldn't even talk. Like I said, he'd already taken all my weapons out of my pockets, but he forgot the laser lipstick I keep in my hair," she told him. This was another thing very few people knew about her. She always kept a weapon of some kind tucked deep into her thick lush hair on a mission, "So while he was…..um….feeling me and….stuff, I freed one of my hands with it. It's a good thing too because then he started stroking and smelling and…..sucking on my hair. He told me he was obsessed with it. Something about the color or the texture. It totally freaked me out. Anyway, then he tried to…….to shove his……….his…………. you know……….into my mouth, but I grabbed it and pulled so hard that I'm surprised it didn't rip off. He curled up into a ball on the floor and started screaming so I freed my other hand and my feet and called up Wade on the communicator as soon as I found it in a drawer."

There was a long stretched out silence.

"Oh my God," Ron whispered in a voice laced with pain, "How could I not have known? Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"Well, back then we were just friends, and I don't know…….after we started dating, I just didn't know how to bring it up. I couldn't just, out of nowhere, tell you I was almost raped by Monkey Fist. Too awkward," she told him, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Is that the only time?" he asked hesitantly, burying his face into her hair, dreading the answer..

"Well……..not necessarily. He's tried things other times after that, but I always manage to get away before anything…….penetratingly major happens. You'd think he'd learn after about the tenth time I practically ripped off his……….you know," Kim said with her eyes on his chest.

"So…..so that's it, right?" Ron asked hesitantly. He really wasn't sure he wanted to hear any more. He was feeling sick to his stomach and angry as hell.

"Well Motor Ed has…….tried things with me before, but it's always been above the waist," she replied with cheeks flaming humiliatingly. Ron could see that she was feeling embarrassed and ashamed.

"KP," Ron told her, stroking her hair soothingly, "You know that none of that is your fault, right? You did the best you could under the circumstances….I'm just sorry I wasn't there to help you when you needed me most."

"Oh Ron," Kim sighed, "Please don't go blaming yourself for all this. It wasn't your fault. And I'm really sorry for not telling you sooner……I guess I might have been afraid you'd be mad."

Ron gave her an incredilous look.

"I know it's stupid," Kim sighed.

"No it's not. I'm actually extremely pissed off," Ron admitted, "But not at you. Never at you. No matter what happens I'll always love you."

Kim smiled up at him lovingly. "Thanks Ronnie," she said before giving him a gentle kiss on the lips. Then, realizing she was completely naked and sitting on Ron's boxer clad lap, she scooped her panties and bra up off the floor and wiggled into them. She thought she'd feel horrible and dirty after telling Ron about Monkey Fist and Motor Ed. But it actually felt great to get it off her chest and out into the open. She'd never told anyone what happened, not even Monique or her mom. She'd been way too ashamed.

"Aw man!" Ron whined, "Just because we didn't do It shouldn't mean I can't look!"

Kim just giggled.

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WOW! What did you think of that chapter? C'mon, I know you want to give me a review after that blow to the stomach! Was I too graphic? Not graphic enough? Should I up the rating to M? I want some controversy on this one!


	7. Goodbye Ron

Thanks so much to those of you who have stuck with me this far. It's about to get a bit darker in the next few chapters. Anyway, Kim Possible and friends belong to Disney. Brad belongs to me!

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Panic. Desperation.

These two emotions clouded Ron's thoughts and fueled his body as he ran. He had no idea how he'd gotten here or why he was running, but he continued to run and run, trying desperately to find what he was looking for. At least he knew he was looking for _**something**_. He continued to run in desperation.

Time was running out. Once again, he didn't know how he knew that, but he did so he ran faster still, pain gripping his heart in it's viselike grip.

Finally, when his panic was about to overcome him, he came upon what he was looking for………………………Kim.

And Brad.

Kim and Brad.

Kim in trouble.

Brad causing that trouble.

Kim under Brad.

Brad holding a knife to her throat as he sat atop her and tried to keep pin her down.

Kim struggling desperately to get Brad off of her.

Kim finally managing to push Brad to the ground and jump to her feet, but before she could go anywhere he grabbed her ankle and, pulling it out from under her, slammed her back down to the ground.

"KIIIIIIIIIIIIIMMMMMMMM!" Ron heard himself scream as he sprinted, tripping over himself, trying to get to her. Anger was now the emotion that clouded his senses. Boiling white hot fury poured through his veins.

Kim whipped her head towards him, and he saw her eyes light up with hope as she looked at him, "RON! Brad's evil! Ron help m……………," her voice trailed off and her eyes went wide with shock as she looked down. Ron followed her eyes down to her abdomen where blood could be seen soaking through her purple mission shirt and flowing onto the ground. She looked back up, and he followed her gaze once again……….to Brad standing over her………with his knife covered in her blood.

"If I can't have you," Ron saw Brad whisper in her ear as he kneeled over her, "no one can."

"NNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Ron screamed as he ran faster towards her. She was still alive, just in deep pain. Brad straddled her as he patiently waited for her to die from loss of blood. She continued to struggle, but was quickly losing blood. She got weaker and weaker by the second.

"Get off," he heard her groan weakly.

Right when he was almost upon them………he was only a few yards away…….he could still save her…..he ran smack into someone and toppled over them onto the ground.

He jumped to his feet and tried to start running towards Kim again, but someone held his shoulder in a viselike grip.

He whipped around in anger, wanting to see who the person that was keeping him from saving Kim was, and saw……….

Yori.

That's who had blocked his path and was now holding his shoulder. That's who was keeping him from saving the only girl he would ever love.

"Let go!" he screamed, and tried to wiggle out of her grasp.

"Stoppable-san," Yori said in her Japanese accent, moving between him and Kim, "I need your help. You must come with me."

"I can't!" he cried, looking around her. He saw Kim now struggling weakly as Brad planted a tender kiss on her lips, "Kim needs me!"

"Possible-san will be fine. You must come with me," Yori said calmly.

"Move! Now!" Ron screamed in her face as he looked around her again only to see Kim, unconscious and completely covered in her own blood, being picked up by Brad, "I have to save Kim!"

"I'm afraid I can't let you save Possible-san," Yori explained with a serene expression.

"Why the hell not?" Ron tried shoving her out of the way, but she wouldn't budge.

"Because you belong with me," Yori told him firmly, "and Brad wants Kim for himself anyway. But, oh my, it looks as though he just killed her, doesn't it?"

Ron, still trying desperately to shove her out of the way, saw Kim's limp body in Brad's strong arms. He had one arm behind her knees and the other around her shoulders as he admired her lithe luscious body. Her head was bent back unnaturally and her arms hung limply at her sides. He looked right at Ron with an evil smirk and said, "I always win," before carrying Kim's lifeless body away.

"NNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" he screamed as loud as he'd ever screamed in his life as sobs wracked his body. He felt his whole world, his existence crashing down around him, "KP! KIM! KIIIIIIIIIIIIIM!"

"Ron!"

"RON!"

"No…….Kim…….sorry…….KIM!"

"Ron, wake-up!" Kim shook him worriedly.

He jerked awake and shot up in bed, "KIM!" he screamed into the dark bedroom.

"Ron, I'm right here," she soothed, "It was just a bad dream."

Tears were pouring out of his eyes as he turned towards her quickly, "KP?"

"Yeah, it's me," Kim sat up with him in the bed, "You're okay. It was only a nightmare."

"Oh my god," he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into an impossibly tight hug, "You're okay. You're fine……..You're here."

"Where else would I be?" she returned the hug as best she could considering she couldn't move her arms.

"Dead……Yori. Brad," he choked as he cried into her hair.

"Ron calm down," she said after a minute in a soothing voice as he sobbed hysterically into her hair, "and tell me what happened."

"I just had the worst dream of my life," Ron admitted as he tightened his hold on her, "I have a really bad feeling about this trip tomorrow."

"Ron, I can't breath," Kim choked out. He instantly released her.

"I'm so sorry!" he looked her over desperately, making sure she was still alive.

"Sssshhhhhh……..it's okay," she laid down and gently placed his head on her chest. His arms wrapped around her waist as his cheek pressed into her collerbone.

"You can tell me all about it in the morning," she whispered to him calmly, " But right now you need to get some sleep. You have a big day tomorrow."

"I love you, I love you, I love you," he whispered back, "I always want you to know that."

"I love you too baby," she cooed as she started running her fingers through his messy blonde hair, "Now get some sleep. I promise I'll be fine."

And with the combination of her chest under his cheek and her fingers in his hair, it wasn't too long before he felt himself drift off into a dreamless sleep.

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They stood outside the airport gate, staring at each other. Ron's suitcases were sitting beside them and Kim gave them a hostile glare. She hated those suitcases. They were visual confirmation that Ron really was getting on that plane……really was leaving her for a month (in case the airport they were currently standing in wasn't enough of a confirmation for her).

Neither one of them said anything. They were both procrastinating the final moment when they would have to say good-bye. They just stared at each other, each with a look of despair on their face. Ron was actually thinking about the dream he'd had the night before. It was still bothering him immensely because he couldn't figure it out. Maybe it was just a bunch of random images in his subconscious strung together………but maybe it meant something. Maybe it foretold of events to come. Or maybe he was about to leave for Yamanouchi and he needed to say goodbye to Kim instead of thinking about his dream. He decided he needed to say something, when Kim did it for him.

"I'm gonna miss you," Kim finally broke the silence with a whisper.

"I'm gonna miss you more," Ron whispered back, a tiny smile tugging at his lips as he realized how cliché they must sound, "We sound like the main characters in some cheesy romance movie."

This caused Kim to crack a smile too, "Yeah……but it's true."

"I know," Ron's smile faded as he looked down at her, "Look. I know this goes without saying, but…….be careful, okay? You're the most badical girlfriend ever, and I want to find you still in one piece when I get back."

He'd called Felix and Brick and told them both the sitch. He also asked them to keep a close eye on Brad. Of course, they both agreed. Brick even said he'd make sure Kim and Brad were never alone together. Between Brick, Felix, Monique, Wade, and the rest of the football team, Ron was confident there was no way Brad could get to Kim. Then, why was he still so worried?

Kim scoffed as she waved away his worry with her flick of her wrist, "I'll be fine. Kim Possible, remember?" she reminded pointing to herself.

"Yeah," Ron admitted, one side of his mouth turning up at the corner at her confidence.

There was another long stretch of silence where they got captured in each other's eyes.

"Flight 180 to Tokyo, Japan is now boarding," a smooth unaffected voice announced over the intercom. Their magical moment was broken and reality set in like an unwanted zit.

"You'll call me every day, won't you?" Kim asked.

"Of course, KP. I'm not sure what time though since I'll probably be really busy," he admitted with regret, "Not to mention the time difference."

"I don't care if it's 3:00 in the morning, call me anyway," Kim told him firmly, "I need my daily dose of Ronshine………even if it is over the communicator."

Kim had begged Wade to make Ron his own communicator so they could see each other when they talked during Ron's month at Yamanouchi. He'd finally relented after her use of the Puppy Dog Pout, and worked all night to get one finished. Luckily he had all the parts and software he needed. It was just a matter of putting it together.

"Don't forget to take good care of Rufus," Ron reminded Kim. He knew he needed to stop the meaningless chitchat and cut to the chase, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it.

"I won't. I've watched him before, remember?" Kim pointed out.

"Yeah. I know. I'm just really nervous right now. I mean, I have to leave you, Rufus, my parents, Felix, Monique, Brick, Wade……………..," his voice trailed off as he watched her wring her hands together.

"Hey," Kim told him sternly, even though she understood where he was coming from, "We'll survive this month. Just think………you'll get back after I've missed you so much and I'll have all this love bottled up inside me, just waiting for you to get back so I can unload it on you in heaps……..You know, absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that."

This actually got a genuine smile from Ron, "Now we **really** sound like a cheesy romance movie."

Kim smiled too, although it was a bit more forced.

Then, out of nowhere, she threw herself into his arms. His own arms went around her reflexively. Luckily, their parents had been very understanding when they asked if they could sleep together the night before. Ron explained the sitch to them and they said they had no problem with it as long as they promised nothing inappropriate would go down. So they slept in Ron's bed, and besides some kissing and cuddling, they kept their promise. And just as he'd promised, he had spent every minute since that fateful call in Kim's company, and for some reason, he felt as though it made it that much harder to leave her.

She tightened her hold on him and dug her face into his neck, committing the smell of him, a combination of ivory soap and nacho cheese, to memory.

He in turn, dug his face into her hair, committing the smell of her, a combination of strawberry and lilac, to memory.

They stood like that for forever, content to just hold each other for the time being.

Ron pulled back slightly and raised her chin with his hand. He guided her lips to his and kissed her deeply. It was one of those earth moving, world shattering, soul embracing kisses where you suddenly know that nothing else in the world matters, not money or power or anything, but her (or him, in Kim's case). Somehow he knew right then, that they belonged together. He'd known it before of course, but this kiss just confirmed it beyond a doubt. He never wanted to kiss any girl but her, never wanted to even look at any girl but her ever again. They were like Yin and Yang, day and night, water and fire. Without one the other could never be whole.

"Final call for flight 108 to Tokyo, Japan," the loud voice boomed over the intercom once again. The slowly pulled apart and Ron could tell Kim was holding back tears.

"I love you," he told her.

"I love you too," she whispered back.

Then Ron picked up his suitcases and, with one last gentle kiss on Kim's soft lips, headed towards the gate to his plane. He looked back over his shoulder every couple of steps to see Kim's sad face looking longingly back at him. He handed his ticket to the flight attendant reluctantly and, casting one last look in Kim's direction so he could memorize her beautiful face, boarded the plane.

Kim watched as the plane carrying Ron took off for Japan without her. When it was nothing more than a speck in the sky, she walked back to her car, where Monique was waiting to keep her company on the drive home.

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So Ron has finally left, and he's having nightmares about Brad hurting Kim...please leave me a review. I love second opinions!


	8. Ron's Arrival

Ron was just stepping off the airplane in Tokyo, and he was already missing Kim badly. He had an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach….like this was all wrong. Like he shouldn't be here….like he should be with Kim instead. But he chalked it up to homesickness (more like Kimsickness) and got into the sleek black car that was waiting for him outside the airport. He hadn't been sure how, but he knew that someone would show up out of nowhere to escort him to the path leading to the front gates of Yamanouchi.

_Ninjas and their stupid secretiveness_, he thought. He was obviously in a bad mood.

In no time at all the car stopped. Ron looked out the window and saw the familiar path leading to Yamanouchi.

No one got out to help him with his luggage or even give him directions when he opened his car door. In fact, he never even saw the driver's face because there was tinted glass between the front seat and the back seat.

_Kinda like in a limo, _he thought randomly.

Luckily, he already knew the way to the Yamanouchi school. It would be very hard to find if you didn't already know where it was.

He heaved a great sigh before picking up his suitcases and starting up the mountain path all by himself.

About halfway up the mountain, he decided to take a break. Sure, he was in way better shape than he had been the last time he'd been there, but a 5 mile hike would take it's tole on anybody.

As he sat down, his thoughts centered on Kim. He wistfully wondered what she was doing at that moment.

Duh! Now would be the perfect time to call her on his new communicator (**his **communicator……sweet!). As he pushed the speed dial button number one, he smiled in anticipation of seeing Kim's face.

They'd only been away from each other for a few hours, but he could feel the distance between them as if it was tangible. He was on the other side of the freaking world!

Kim picked up quickly and a smile blossomed on her face when she saw it was Ron and not Wade with some disaster.

"Ron!" she exclaimed.

"Hey KP!" Ron said back, beaming at her, "I just wanted you to know that I made it okay…..And that I already miss you."

"Oh. I miss you too," Kim whined, "Life is so boring without you here."

"Kim Possible's life, boring?" Ron exclaimed in mock horrification, "Impossible!"

"Haha. Funny Ron," Kim said dryly. There was a slight pause in the conversation.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to make you mad," Ron's smile faded as he apologized. The last thing he wanted to do was fight with her.

"You didn't make me mad. I'm just on edge without you around. I think you have a calming effect on me," Kim admitted with a rueful smile.

"Yeah. I haven't felt right since I left either," Ron's smile returned.

"Where are you right now?" Kim asked him.

"About halfway up the path to Yamanouchi. I decided to take a break and check in with you," Ron told her, "Where are you?"

"At home, moping. I'm driving my family crazy," Kim admitted sadly.

"Where are Monique and Brick and Felix?" Ron inquired.

"Well Monique has a date with Brick. They offered to let me go, but I told them three's a crowd, and Felix is at some video game convention. Totally not my scene," Kim informed him, "On the bright side, I do have Rufust to keep me company!"

At this Rufus popped in front of the screen and waved at Ron.

"Hey buddy!" Ron exclaimed, "Are you taking good care of Kim for me?"

"Uh-huh," Rufus nodded his head as Kim rolled her eyes.

"Good….I'm counting on you to keep her entertained too," Ron smiled slyly, "Since I'm not there to keep her occupied with our……usual activities."

This actually got a small giggle from Kim, "Yeah. I do miss our……..usual activities. I guess I'll just have to find someone else to do them with," Kim sighed as though put out by this thought.

"Don't even joke KP," Ron whined.

"Sorry," Kim apologized, but she was still smiling, "You know I would never do that. I'd rather be sitting at home moping than doing our usual activities with anyone but you."

"As it should be," Ron said mock-seriously while shaking a finger at her.

He looked so ridiculous that Kim went into full blown laughter and Ron soon joined in. Ron heard Kim laughing, so he laughed harder and Kim heard Ron laughing, so she laughed harder until they were both gasping for air.

After their giggles died down, Kim looked at him with longing, "If you were with me right now, we'd probably be making out already."

Ron was still smiling hugely when he replied, "Yeah. I know………Aw man! And It's only the first day!"

Kim giggled again.

Then mid-giggle she shouted, "Ron! Behind you!:

Ron whipped his head around and dropped into a defensive stance, ready for some evil ninja to come and attack him.

But it wasn't an evil ninja that jumped out of the trees, it was Yori. "Stoppable-san, I am sorry to have startled you," she said, bowing low. She looked shocked, but Kim couldn't tell if that was because she'd been caught spying or because of Ron's quick reaction timing.

"Yori?" Ron asked, hesitantly standing up straight, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to escort you to the school," Yori explained in her Japanese accent. There was a slight pause, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to say goodbye to Possible-san. We must keep walking if we wish to make it by nightfall."

"Oh…..Okay," Ron's face fell as he turned toward the communicator again, "I'm sorry KP. I gotta go."

"No big," Kim replied with a wave of her hand, although she did give Yori the most threatening glare she could via the communicator, "Just call me as soon as you can, okay?"

"You got it, KP," Ron said firmly, "I love you."

Kim smiled at him, "I love you too, baby."

They stared at each other for a few more seconds, each one's eyes filled with longing for the other.

"Be careful," Ron warned. He knew he'd said it about a dozen times, but he had a strange feeling that she was in danger. He'd always had a sixth sense when it came to her, and right now his 'Kimmie' senses were tingling.

Kim just smiled one last time before switching off the communicator.

Ron's heart dropped into his stomach as he looked at the blank screen that had held Kim's face a moment before. How was it possible to miss her again already?! He'd just talked to her! Before he had time to contemplate this, Yori came up behind him and wrapped her arms around him in a hug.

"I have missed you Stoppable-san," she whispered into his shoulder blades, "You're presence greatly calms me."

Ron jumped at the contact, and disentangled himself from her arms as quickly as possible, "Ha ha…….yeah," Ron rubbed the back of his neck nervously with his hand, "Good to see you too….ha ha…..um, why don't we head up?"

"That sounds, how you say 'badical'," Yori told him with a seductive smile.

"Yeah……..Right," Ron replied, looking at everything but her.

The hike up the mountain was a tenuous one since it got steeper the higher they climbed. Ron was also uncomfortably aware of Yori's gaze on his back the whole time.

After they had started dating, Kim had explained to him that Yori liked him….of course, he'd had no idea. Could she still have a crush on him, even after two years? Not to mention she **had **to know he was dating Kim after what she'd heard of their conversation over the communicator. He didn't like this sitch. It was weirding him out.

After a while, he got used to Yori's gaze and ignored it. Instead, his mind turned to the dream he'd had the night before. (It was crazy to think that just last night he'd been asleep in his bed with Kim cuddled up next to him. Now he was lonely and missing her.) He thought a lot about Brad. Was he just another one of Kim's many admirers, or was there something more sinister behind those dark brown eyes that looked almost exactly like his? Should he worry about Kim being with him for a month without Ron there to keep him in line? He had no idea. He just had to have faith in Brick, Felix, Wade, and the football team to have Kim's back.

When they finally got to Yamanouchi, Sensei was standing at the gate, waiting for them. Ron bowed low upon reaching him, and Sensei nodded his head to acknowledge him.

"Hello Ron Stoppable," Sensei greeted in his deep voice, "It is a great honor to have you here."

"The honor is mine Sensei. I'm very happy to be here." Ron replied graciously, but as Sensei looked into his eyes, all he saw was sadness……..not happiness.

And when he looked at Yori, all he saw was a lovesick puppy expression on her face as she gazed in open admiration at Ron.

"Yori, you shall escort Ron to his chambers, and make him feel at home," Sensei told her with a stern look.

Ron almost made the mistake of scoffing. Luckily he stopped himself before anyone noticed.

_Like I could ever feel at home without KP here, _he thought sadly.

"Of course, Sensei," Yori tore her gaze from Ron to face him. She bowed very low, nose almost to the ground, before turning back to Ron, "Let us go now Stoppable-san. Your chambers are next to mine."

Ron followed her reluctantly. He was a little nervous to be alone with her. She was making him extremely uncomfortable.

"And Yori?" Sensei called after them. They immediately stopped and turned towards him, "Come and see me once Stoppable-san is settled."

Yori nodded once before taking Ron's hand and leading him to one of the many buildings. They walked to the largest one and, upon arriving at the door, Ron glady took the excuse of opening the door to let go of Yori's hand.

They went inside and walked down a long hallway. When they passed the third paper door on the right Yori told him, "That room is mine. It is right next to yours in case you should need anything. Do not hesitate to come to me if you are having difficulties."

Ron just shook his head okay while still avoiding her eyes as they came upon the next door. Yori slid it open and gestured for Ron to follow her in.

When he walked into the room, he was instantly reminded of the last time he'd been there. It was a different room of course, nicer than the one he'd had before, but it still looked much the same as he remembered his old one. The most notable feature of the room was the flat, hard bed on the floor, a mat. Ron hated those mats.

His homesickness just increased tenfold as he thought once again of the big comfortable bed in his room. He smiled at the thought of how much more comfortable it was when Kim was sleeping in it with him.

Yori, taking his smile to mean he was happy with his room, beamed back at him, "Come and see me as soon as you are settled, Stoppable-san."

She bowed to him before turning around to face the door. She made sure to put an extra sway in her hips as she slowly walked toward the exit. She walked out the door, down the hallway, and onto the school grounds with a huge smile on her pretty face the whole time.

Upon reaching the grounds where Sensei had stood before, she immediately walked over to him. She watched him with a little apprehension as she walked towards him. Once she reached his tiny form, she bowed low once again.

"Yori," Sensei said her name calmly, "I know I have warned you of this before but it seems as though you do not believe me. The way you look at Stoppable-san holds no honor. He is committed to Kim Possible, and you must not interfere unless he chooses for you to."

Yori looked downcast as she replied, "I understand Sensei. I just thought that maybe you were wrong about his destiny."

"I was not," Sensei told her a little more firmly, "Possible-san is his destiny. This I am sure of. If he were to stray from his destiny, that would be his own fault, but you must not have an impact on anything he does. If he wishes to have you instead of Possible-san, he must make that choice without your interference."

Sensei looked skeptical as he told her this, "Do not expect this to happen though. It is very obvious that he is completely devoted to Possible-san."

Yori just nodded her head and looked at the ground as her eyes filled with tears. "I understand," she whispered quietly.

Because her head was low, Sensei did not see the defiant glint in her eye as she answered him.

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Oooooooooo...Suspense! Leave me a review. Tell me what you think!


	9. Brad Makes A Move

_I wonder what all that was about, _Kim thought to herself after she'd hung up with Ron, _Yori still likes Ron. It's soooo obvious. But she knows I'm dating him. She'd never make a move now that she knows we're together...would she? Why was she spying on Ron then? Was she listening to our conversation?_

Realizing what she was doing, Kim mentally scolded herself for thinking too far into things and tried to make herself watch TV. All of her homework was done, all of her chores were finished, and currently there was no disaster that needed her attention. So what should she do?

She instantly started fidgeting. She'd never been one to laze around and watch TV like Ron. In fact, the only reason she ever watched TV was because she was always with Ron and he liked to watch it.

So here she was, watching a program on TV she had no interest in while her boyfriend was all the way across the world. Not only was she bored, but she was homesick on top of it (more like Ronsick since she already **was **home). She felt the absence of his touch constantly since he'd left. She'd never realized how much physical contact they had until she'd had to go without it for almost a whole day now.

When she thought about it, he always had a hand either on her back or her hip or her shoulder, and she always had a hand on his arm or waist. Now that that contact was missing, she no longer felt complete.

Just when she was about to start throwing things out of boredom, he home phone rang. She quickly jumped up to get it, just for something to do.

"Hello?" she said into the phone.

"Hi," a deep voice answered, "Is Kim home?"

"This is Kim. Who's speaking?" she asked curiously. She thought she'd heard the voice somewhere but didn't recognize it.

"Hi Kim! This is Brad," the voice had way more enthusiasm in it, now that it knew it was talking to Kim.

"Brad?" Kim asked disbelievingly.

"Yeah!" Brad confirmed enthusiastically, "I heard about Ron leaving town, and I figured you must be bored considering you spend, like, aaaallll your time with him."

"Yeah. I do miss him," Kim admitted into the phone a little reluctantly, not noticing his sarcastic tone, "but why are you calling me? We're not exactly best friends."

"Yeah. I know, but I was wondering if you wanted some company. I can be very entertaining when I want to be," Brad said charmingly.

"Ummmmmm...I don't think that's a very good idea," Kim said hesitantly. She didn't want to hurt his feelings, but more importantly, she didn't want to hurt Ron's feelings.

"Look. I am really really sorry if I made you uncomfortable when I started crying. I know it was totally sissy of me, but I just lost it when I started talking about my ex-girlfriend. She meant a lot to me," Brad apologized with a sad sigh.

"Don't apologize to me. Apologize to Ron," Kim told him sternly, "You got a little too physical with me there and you made him mad...and when my boyfriend's mad, I'm mad."

"Yeah. I understand," Brad sounded like he was a puppy that had just been kicked, "So Ron doesn't like me?"

"No. Ron does not like you," Kim told him.

"I just don't understand why. I mean, I've been really nice to him, trying to make friends. I don't seem to be having much luck in that department. It's so hard to be new, ya know?" Brad asked.

"Sorry, but no...not really. I've been going to the same school my whole life," Kim said regretfully. She realized that Ron may have overreacted to Brad just a little bit. He was just a sensitive guy trying to fit in and make friends in a new town.

"So, to cut this short, you're basically turning me down because Ron said you couldn't hang out with me?" Brad said dejectedly. Then he cut her off before she could answer, "I didn't think you were the type of girl to just do what your boyfriend tells you to."

"Ron didn't tell me I couldn't hang out with you. He's not that kind of boyfriend!" Kim replied defensively.

"So lets hang out then," Brad coaxed with a smooth voice, completely switching his demeanor, "We're both bored out of our minds sitting at home doing nothing, so why not hang out? What could it hurt?"

Kim contemplated this for a moment...and realized that he had a point.

"C'mon," Brad pleaded, "We'll go to a public place where nothing 'physical' can happen and I promise to be an absolute gentleman!"

"Well...okay," Kim agreed reluctantly, "But this is **not**, under any circumstances, a date!"

"Totally understood," Brad replied. Kim could hear the smile in his voice over the phone, "How about I come pick you up, and we head to the mall?"

"Sounds good. Just give me ten minutes to change," Kim said, a smile on her face also. Finally, she was **doing **something.

"Okay, see ya," Brad said happily.

"Bye," Kim hung up the phone...Had she just mad a mistake?

_What's the worst that can happen? _She thought to herself, _I know sixteen styles of Kung Fu. I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself._

Nodding her head with conviction, she rushed up the stairs to get changed.

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Kim rushed down the stairs about five minutes later, ready to go. She'd actually made sure to dress down for the occasion. She wanted to make it absolutely clear to Brad that they were just two friends hanging out at the mall. She had on a pair of her favorite blue jeans and a simple green tank top. She had already run a brush through her long, thick hair and put on a smidge of mascara. To finish it off, she slipped on a pair of black flats before heading into the kitchen.

"Hey mom," she poked her head in to find that her mother was baking cookies, "I'm going to the mall for a while, okay?"

"Really?" Anne took a break from stirring the cookie dough to give her daughter a funny look, "With who?"

"A new guy named Brad," Kim replied quickly, trying to rush out the door before her mom could question her further. No such luck.

"Will it just be you and Brad?" Anne called after her.

"Well, yeah," Kim replied hesitantly, poking her head back in, "But we're just friends."

"..."

"Mom!" Kim cried at the suspicious look Anne gave her, "It's like me going to the mall with Wade or Felix or Brick. No big!"

"Mmmmmmm hmmmmmm," her mother nodded her head knowingly, giving Kim the eye.

"Mom, I gotta go! He's gonna be here any minute," Kim tried to make another dash for the kitchen door, but was once again stopped...by Rufus.

"Hey!" Rufus squeaked at her, tiny fists on hips.

"Rufus, I'm sorry," Kim said as she turned to look at him, "But maybe you should stay home and help mom make cookies."

Rufus just crossed his tiny arms and firmly shook his head no.

"Actually, I think it's a good idea that Rufus go with you," Anne commented to her daughter. She knew that, for a naked mole rat, Rufus was a very smart animal and had saved Kim's life on many occasions. She trusted Kim with Ron completely and would let her go just about anywhere with him, but she knew nothing about this Brad guy. She knew Rufus would keep him in check, considering Ron wasn't around to do so.

And Rufus, having been briefed by Ron on his feelings of Brad, knew the score. There was no way he was taking no for an answer, and Kim didn't need to fight the battle to know she would lose it.

"Alright, hop in," Kim told Rufus, holding out an extra pocket in her jeans. Wade had put one on every one of her jeans, just for occasions like this where she might need to carry Rufus.

Rufus happily crawled up to her shoulder and nuzzled her cheek.

Kim smiled at him, "Fine. Sit on my shoulder all day then. I don't care."

As she was rushing out the door to meet Brad at his car, she called out, "Bye mom! I'll be back before too late."

"Be careful, honey!" her mom called after her, but she was already out the door.

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Brad smiled to himself as he waited patiently in his car outside Kim's house. Everything was working out perfectly. Not only did Kim have no idea what kind of person he really was, she wanted to be friends with the person she thought he was! He was playing his part so well! It was all too perfect. Since the idiot had left, he'd expected it to take at least a few days to convince her to go somewhere with him...but it had only taken all of ten minutes! She obviously liked to be active. She'd practically jumped at the chance to get out and do something. Brad made sure to file that piece of information away with all the rest of the little things he knew about her.

His smile grew wider as he thought of how easy this was going to be. His plan was to take it slow and play the role of supportive, sympathetic friend for a while. In fact, he'd act just like Ron did most of the time, even though he absolutely despised the loser. After she trusted him completely and was convinced she might just love him, he would make his move.

He looked out the window to see Kim walking down her driveway toward him. He watched her raptly, glad for the tinted windows so he could stare at her freely without having to worry about her catching him. God, she was so hot, and she didn't even know it. Even in her jeans and tank top with practically no make-up on, she looked ten times better than most of the glammed up celebrities out there, at least in his opinion.

His wide smile dropped somewhat when he saw the naked mole rat sitting on her shoulder. Why didn't the loser take that thing with him? Man, he hated naked mole rats, and now he'd have to pretend that he thought it was cool instead of the ugly wrinkled thing it was. For whatever reason, Kim loved it almost as much as the wimp.

Before he knew it, Kim was at the door. She opened it and hopped in, smiling at him.

"Hope you don't mind the company," she said, gesturing towards her shoulder.

"Of course not. That little guy is so cool!" he gushed with fake enthusiasm.

"Really? You think so?" Kim asked him happily, "Most people just think he's gross."

_Then most people are right, _Brad thought with contempt.

"Gross? No way! I wish I had an awesome naked mole rat like Rufus. Anyway, you ready to go?" he asked her quickly, eager to change the subject.

She nodded her head as Rufus glared at him.

"Booyah!" he exclaimed as they sped off toward the mall.

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I know, a really short chapter. I want to skip straight to the ending because I'm pretty sure I know how I'm gonna finish it, but first I have to get through all the rest. Anyway, please leave a review!


	10. Dramatic Phone Conversations

Thanks once again for all your reviews! It's what keeps me writing...I'm sorry this chapter took so long. I've been busy with Christmas and such. (I'm sure we all have). Anway, please leave me a review and tell me what you think!

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Ron dragged himself towards his room after the first day of his Yamanouchi training. He was thoroughly exhausted. All he wanted to do was take a shower, call Kim to tell her goodnight, and drop dead on his bed...okay mat.

Sensei had put him through some rigorous training, already pinning him up against some of the best students in the school. He'd beaten everyone he'd been put up against, although some of the sparring matches took over an hour to finish. He wondered, not for the first time that day, why he was here. So far, Sensei hadn't taught him anything Kim hadn't already, just made him fight against extremely well trained ninjas.

He randomly thought that his sparring matches with Kim were much more fun, even though she usually beat him...okay, she always beat him. Of course, her 'ear spots' were off limits, otherwise he'd win every time. But at least when he sparred with her, he got 'rewards' whenever he did something right.

Kim knew that he responded well to praise and positivity for doing things right, so that was the technique she used with him, unlike Yamanouchi. They believed in punishment for doing something wrong and he was having a difficult time getting used to it.

Without realizing he'd gotten there, he found himself in his room. He sleepily grabbed his towel and headed toward the bathroom...if you could call it that. In Japan, the tubs were these huge pool-size monstrosities that everyone bathed in together. Luckily for Ron, it was so late that when he got in there, the place was empty. He was still uncomfortable with the whole thing, so he made sure to find times when no one else was in the bathroom to take his bath.

He stripped himself of his clothing and slipped into the warm, bubbly water. He sighed in pleasure as the warmth in the water soothed the rapidly growing sores all over his body. He began scrubbing himself down with shampoo and soap that was provided for him. Finally done, he leaned back against the edge of the tub and let the water wash the day away.

_The only thing missing, _he thought wryly, _is my gorgeous redheaded girlfriend._

The second his brain had processed the thought, he heard a quiet scuffle behind him. He about jumped out of his skin as he whirled around to see...Yori.

"What the hell?" he blurted out before he could stop himself. His heart was still beating furiously.

"I am sorry to have startled you once again, Stoppable-san," Yori smiled at him teasingly, referring to their encounter on the mountain path earlier, "I seem to do that a lot."

"No kidding," Ron mumbled under his breath. He looked at her somewhat angrily, "What are you doing here?"

Yori giggled girlishly, "You with your American-style jokes. I am about to take a bath, silly."

"Yeah...about that," Ron rubbed the back of his neck nervously, making sure to keep as much of himself under the water as possible.

He looked over at her, ready to explain that this just wasn't how things were done in America.

Then, realizing what she was doing a moment before she did it, he whipped his head away from her as her robe dropped to the floor.

"Yori!" he yelled, still turned away from her, "Could you not?"

"What?" she asked innocently as she slipped into the water next to him, completely naked. He hastily scooted to the opposite side of the tub.

"Look. I'm done so I'm uh...gonna head out," Ron stumbled over his words as he grabbed his towel from the edge of the huge bathtub.

There was an awkward silence for about twenty long seconds before Ron finally said, "Would ya mind turning away?"

"Why would I do that?" Yori asked as though he were stupid for even suggesting it.

"Because I'm about to get out," he explained, pronunciating each word slowly, in turn acting as though she were stupid for not knowing the reason why.

"Yes?" Yori still did not understand, or at least acted as though she didn't.

"And in America, you're not supposed to look at other people when they're naked, especially other people who have girlfriends!" Ron exclaimed.

"Oh. Very well," she huffed, finally turning away.

Ron, quick as lightening, hopped out of the water and wrapped the towel around his waist. The only person who'd seen him naked besides his own mother was Kim, and he was content to keep it that way.

He could fell Yori's eyes on his back as he rushed out of the room.

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Having just slipped into his boxers, Ron was picking up the communicator to call Kim when he heard a knock on his door (more like screen).

He looked up, surprised, with his finger hovering over the speed dial button that would connect him to Kim. "Yeah?" he called out curiously.

"It is me, Yori," a feminine voice answered back from the other side of the screen.

"Yeah?" he repeated.

"May I come in?" Yori asked quietly.

"Are you fully clothed?" Ron asked sarcastically.

"Yes."

"Then yes," Ron told her.

The screen slid open silently when Yori opened it. She walked into the room before turning around and shutting it behind her. Ron would never admit it, but this made him a little nervous.

"Why don't you just leave it open?" he asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"I do not want to wake the others," she explained in a whisper.

Ron just nodded as he stared at her.

Finally taking the hint, she went on, "I would just like to apologize for causing you to be uncomfortable back there. That was not my intention."

"Okay. Apology accepted, don't do it again, yada yada yada," Ron rushed, waving her towards the door. He was eager to talk to Kim, and the way he saw it, the sooner he got Yori out of there, the sooner he could call her.

"That is it?" Yori asked him incredulously as she was being pushed out the screen door.

"Yep. American-style forgiveness. Night," he explained in a hurry before shutting the screen door behind her.

He rushed back to the communicator and picked it up. After watching Yori's shadow recede into her room, he held down the number one speed dial button on the communicator as an easy smile slowly began to light up his face.

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Kim was just walking in her front door after a long day of shopping with Brad when her communicator beeped its familiar tune. She hurried up the stairs to her room where she dropped all of her bags unceremoniously into a pile on her carpet. She wearily slipped the beeping device out of her pocket and held it up to her face, praying that it was Ron and not Wade with a mission for her.

She was not disappointed.

"Ron!" she exclaimed happily as she beamed into the tiny camera.

"Hey KP!" Ron's smile matched her own when he saw her.

"What have you been doing?" they asked simultaneously.

"I asked you first!" they exclaimed in unison once again.

"Did not!" they both cried again, crossing their arms at the same time.

"You go first!" their voices sounded like one as they spoke once again.

"Okay, okay!" Ron exclaimed, waving his hands in the air to stop Kim from saying the same thing as him again, "Since my day was so boring, I'll go first."

"Fine," Kim replied with a small smile.

"Okay...well, after I got off the phone with you, I walked the rest of the way up the mountain," Ron began with very little enthusiasm in his voice, "Then, I unpacked and trained for the rest of the day."

"You trained all day?" Kim asked incredulously, "With no video games or cheese in between sessions?"

"No!" Ron tried to look offended, bu he really wasn't...mainly because he **had** been craving Bueno Nacho and Zombie Mayhem throughout his sessions, "I've been training very hard, thank you very much!"

"I know. I'm sorry," Kim said, but there was still laughter dancing in her bright green eyes.

"What have you been up to?" Ron asked her.

"Well, I went shopping today," Kim told him evasively, not quite meeting his gaze. She always had trouble when she wasn't being completely honest with him, and she absolutely sucked at lying outright, so she knew she'd tell him everything eventually, including the fact that Brad had been the one to take her to the mall.

"Really? Sounds fun," Ron smiled at her, not catching her uncomfortable shifting, "Did you go by yourself or with someone?"

"I went with someone," Kim said hesitantly. She still refused to meet his gaze, but this time Ron noticed.

"Who?" he asked her, narrowing his eyes slightly. A long stretch of silence followed his question.

"...Brad," Kim finally let out in a huge breath. She figured she might as well get it over with sooner rather than later, "But just as friends! And we went to the mall where he couldn't start crying again or anything...and I mad sure there was no physical contact involved!"

"Kim!" Ron exclaimed, "I told you how I feel about him!"

"I know, Ron, but you don't really even know him," Kim defended herself, "He's actually a really nice guy. If you would just talk to him instead of automatically labeling him off as a pretty boy, you might actually like him!"

"But he _**is**_a pretty boy!" Ron's voice was rising with every word.

"God, Ron! He's just like you!" Kim fired back before thinking about what was coming out of her mouth.

"He...is...not...like...me," Ron said menacingly.

"He is so!" Kim was a little scared by his tone, but decided that there was no turning back now, "He looks like you **and** acts like you!"

"Oh really?" Ron scoffed. Kim nodded her head forcefully, "Like how?"

"Like how his favorite restaurant is Bueno Nacho. Like how he thinks Rufus is cool. Like how he trips over himself because he's so clumsy. Like how, at random times, he says something that's so stupid, yet so insightful at the same time, that you wonder if he may be some kind of genius and he doesn't even know it. Like how he makes random jokes just to make me smile when he can tell I'm feeling down because I'm talking and laughing with him and not YOU!" Kim exclaimed, cheeks turning red in frustration.

Ron took a deep breath, calming himself down before replying, "Look Kim. I'm not trying to tell you who you can and can't hang out with. I just want you to be safe while I'm not there. Maybe if you just took someone with you, I'd feel better about the whole sitch."

"No big, Ron," Kim replied, also calming down at Ron's words, "Rufus went with us today."

Ron breathed a sigh of relief, "Good."

There was a tension filled silence before Kim finally asked the question she'd been wanting to ask since the beginning of their conversation, "Ron...why don't you trust me?" To her displeasure, her voice broke on the last word.

Her eyes went down to look at her hands instead of him, afraid of his answer.

"KP," Ron sighed sadly. Guilt and regret for yelling at her earlier washed over him, "It's not you I don't trust. It's Brad. He's bad news."

"I just get a vibe, KP," Ron shrugged his shoulders. He didn't want to tell her about the shouting match between the two back in the empty classroom at the high school. That was totally awkweird territory.

"Alright," Kim looked into his eyes and decided to just trust him, "I'll start making sure someone's with us when we hang out. Is Rufus okay or would you rather it be a human?"

"Kim, Rufus is fine. It's totally up to you." This was not the direction he had expected the conversation to turn, "I won't become one of those controlling boyfriends who won't let their girlfriends out of the house. You can make your own decisions...I just wanted to give you my opinion."

"And I'm glad you did," Kim quickly reassured him. Even if he did screw a lot of things up, Ron had an extremely good sense of character and the uncanny ability to sense when something was off-kilter. She trusted his instincts.

When she thought about it, he'd been right about the Little Diablos...and about Monkey Fist. She still remembered when they first met him, Ron had immediately told her that he thought Monty was 'miles of bad road'. She hadn't believed that a wealthy English nobleman could be evil in any way, but look at how wrong she'd been.

"Are we good?" he asked her a little nervously, interrupting her thoughts. The last thing he wanted to do was fight with her.

"Always," she smiled back at him, longing creeping into her eyes.

"So I take it by that look on your face that your desire to kiss me is as strong as my desire to kiss you?" Ron tried to sound suave, but couldn't tell if he was any good.

Kim giggled, "Your assumption is quite accurate." She also took up a British accent.

"It is a shame we cannot act upon our desires for one another," Ron's suaveness slipped somewhat as his playful demeanor dropped slightly.

"Yeah," Kim also stopped the playful banter, "I miss you."

"Me too," Ron sighed, "Only 28 days to go."

"Yeah," Kim sighed.

"KP...I gotta go," Ron said, regret overwhelming his voice, "It's, like, really late here, and I have to get up at four in the morning."

"Okay," Kim looked at him sadly, "Love you."

"Love you too," Ron replied in what was quickly becoming their traditional sign-off.

They stared at each other a moment longer, each reluctant to turn off their screen, before Ron finally hit the off button. He sighed as he tried to get comfortable on the hard, unforgiving mat that would be his bed for a month.

That night, his dreams were filled with one particular teen hero...

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So Kim's finally starting to listen to Ron. I'm sure from now on she'll be more careful around Brad...What did you think? Leave a review!


	11. The Plan

I'm really sorry this chapter took so long. I've been extremely busy, but I will try to get the next chapter out sooner. Thanks for sticking with me!

Once again, Kim Possible and friends belong to Disney. Brad is all mine.

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"We just got in this new top at CB that is TDF!" Monique exclaimed to her best girl friend as they walked towards their lockers at the end of the school day.

"Alright. I know CB stands for Club Banana," Kim cocked an eyebrow, "but TDF?"

"To die for!" Monique replied without missing a beat, "It would look so uh-mazing on you! You have **got** to come shopping with me and try it on!"

Kim's mind unintentionally wandered to more interesting subjects as Monique prattled on. She thought about Ron...and Brad. She really wanted to be friends with Brad, but it seemed as though being Brad's friend and Ron's girlfriend at the same time was near impossible...even for a Possible.

Maybe if she told Brad that their friendship could only last until Ron returned...

No. That was ridiculous. That would be totally unfair to Brad. Ron had said he was okay with Brad as long as she didn't hang out with him alone, and Rufus went everywhere with her anyway. It was no trouble taking him along when she and Brad went somewhere...which they had been doing quite a bit in the past week.

Brad had become a sort of coping mechanism for her. When she was with him, it was easier not to dwell on Ron's absence. They'd already been to the movies, the mall, and each others houses...all with Rufus in tow of course. She found the more time she spent with him, the more time she wanted to spend with him. Little did she know that many students at school had a new nickname for Brad - KTR (Kim's Temporary Ron).

When Kim didn't reply to some question Monique had asked her, Monique examined her friend to find her staring off into space. She gave a huff before stomping ahead and turning around to face the teen hero. She stopped suddenly, forcing Kim to stop accordingly before they collided with one another.

"What's the sitch, Mon?" Kim asked placing her hands on her cocked hips and raising an annoyed eyebrow.

Monique rolled her eyes. "Get Ron out of your head girl!. I want some girl time, but you are oh-so-selfishly taking that time away from me by fantasizing about lover-boy!" Monique declared with a pointed finger in Kim's face.

"Please. You'd be doing the same thing if Brick were gone," Kim swatted the offending finger away, "It's not like I'm not trying to not think about Ron!...okay that so made no sense."

Kim sighed. She felt bad about ignoring her best girl friend, but Monique had no idea what she was going through. A week without Ron...a week! Except for the dreaded Camp Wannaweep summer, she'd never been away from him for this long.

"I'm sorry. How about I make it up to you?" Kim asked with an apologetic sigh, "Shopping trip?"

"Now you're talking my language!" Monique exclaimed, "Today after school?"

"Sounds like a plan," Kim smiled and turned to open her locker. Her eye was immediately drawn to the Pan Dimensional Vortex Inducer currently residing there. She'd retrieved it from Dementor the day before and was supposed to hand it over to Global Justice the next day. She could just imagine what Ron would say if he were here. Something along the lines of, "You'd think Global Justice would eventually catch on and put some real security around that stupid thing! I mean, this is like, what, the tenth time it's been stolen?!"

"Hey guys," Kim's thoughts were interrupted by a voice in her ear and a huge arm wrapped around her shoulder.

"Hey Brick," she said, smiling when he bent down to kiss Monique's cheek..

"Sup?" Brick asked them with one lazy arm around each of their shoulders.

"We're just talking about what we're gonna do after school."

"Shop!" Monique squealed.

"Oh," Brick said disappointedly, "Care if I pass?"

"Not a bit," Monique told him, "You've been monopolizing me any way. I need my girl time. Poor Kim doesn't have a BF to keep her company like I do."

Kim just rolled her eyes. For as much as Monique got on her for thinking about Ron too much, she sure brought him up a lot.

"She's got me to keep her company," Brad walked up next to Kim, forcing Brick to move his arm from around her.

"That I do," Kim smiled at him and once again thought of how lucky she was to have him to keep her busy during the coarse of this never-ending month, "And you're great company, if I do say so myself."

"I try," he replied, grinning goofily, "Speaking of which, how would you like to go to Bueno Nacho after school?"

"Sounds like fun,"

"I thought you were going shopping with Monique!" Brick blurted out with an indignant look. Kim looked surprised by his outburst and stared at him quizzically before slowly turning to her friend.

"Mon, would it be okay if I met you at the mall around four?"

"Sure. That's cool," Monique was also puzzled over Brick's peculiar behavior. Now his brow creased in annoyance.

"You already promised Monique!" Brick said sternly.

"She's okay with it," Kim said incredulously, "Why are you being so weird?"

Brick huffed, "I'm not being weird! I just don't think you should break your promise."

"Ooooookaaaaaaay," Kim said, sharing an incredulous glance with Brick. Brick could have sworn Kim's raised eyebrows mocked him.

"Brick, it's cool. Chillax baby boy," Monique calmed him by placing a soft hand on his shoulder, "You and me will hang out until four."

Kim smiled, "See? No big."

A sudden smile broke out over Brick's face as well, "Sorry. Didn't mean to freak." He raised his eyebrows as if he'd just come up with an incredible idea. "Hey, I know! How about we **all** go to Bueno Nacho? And then Kim and Monique can leave from there and go to the mall!"

Kim thought for a moment. "Sure. That's fine," she said into her locker as she shoved in more of her books.

Brick smiled in satisfaction. He felt he was doing Ron proud by keeping his promise to watch over Kim and Brad.

"No, no, no," Brad said with a grin and a wave of his hand, "You two kids go have a good time. I'll have Kim at the mall by four no problem."

"Actually, I'm kinda starving," Brick stared at Brad with a steady, challenging gaze, "Bueno Nacho would definitely hit the spot right about now. If you guys don't mind, I'd really like to come."

"Of course we don't mind," Kim cut in before Brad could say another word. "It'll be fun," she added with a smile in Brad's direction.

Brad's words died on his lips when he saw Kim's dazzling smile. He might as well let it go. He knew there was no winning this one. Then, out of the corner of his eye he spotted a familiar looking device in Kim's locker. As he turned to stare at it fully, he remembered reading about it when he'd studied her and all of her missions. He had each and every one of her exploits memorized. Therefore, it only took his brain half a second to recognize the complicated device.

"Kim, what's that in your locker?" he asked innocently. He'd almost blurted the name of the contraption out loud, but managed to catch himself before he did. Obviously, he wasn't supposed to know what it was so he'd have to pretend he didn't.

"Oh...that?" Kim said with a nervous gesture towards the device, "It's nothing. Kind of a top secret save the world thing." She quickly slammed her locker shut before he could get a better look at it.

"Oh," he decided not to press the issue of the name of it since he already knew, "What's it doing in your locker?"

"I have to return it to Global Justice tomorrow," Kim replied, rubbing the back of her neck in a very Ron-ish way while hastily changing the subject, "Let's head out. I'm famished."

As they trooped towards their respective vehicles (Brad and Kim to Brad's car, Brick and Monique to Brick's car), Brad's brain went into overdrive. His brilliant mind was already hatching a plan.

One of the qualities that Kim found most attractive in a guy was bravery. This Brad knew for certain. She also couldn't resist a call for help. He also knew, even if Kim herself didn't, that she loved running to someone's rescue. At present, she had a Pan Dimensional Vortex Inducer in her locker that many seedy characters would be happy to steal. She had to return the PDVI to Global Justice the next day after school.

He slowly started to put the pieces together into a master plan that would draw Kim even closer to him. Somehow he had to put his plan into action before Kim returned the PDVI the next day. Unfortunately, it would have to occur during the school day, but that simply couldn't be helped. If students were hurt, it wasn't any skin off of his back.

He grinned when his plan laid itself out perfectly in his mind.

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I know. I know. I left you hanging AND it was a short chapter. I'm really sorry, but I've gotta keep you hooked somehow right? Anyway, please review!


	12. Ron's Destiny

1Hey guys! I'm really sorry it took me so long to finish this chapter. But now that summer's finally here, I'm hoping to get them out sooner. So enjoy!

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Ron's thoughts were completely blank. Eyes closed, legs crossed in the lotus position, he thought nothing and everything at the same time. He was one with the earth, one with the sky, one with the world, and one with himself.

In the previous week, he had honed his skills as a warrior...as a ninja. After many tedious hours of trying to successfully meditate, he could now become one with his surroundings effortlessly.

Sensei was extremely happy with Ron's progress. Before when they meditated, the silence would be punctuated by Ron's grunts and snores, but now he was quickly becoming the most talented ninja in the school.

Sensei watched Ron and Yori intently from the sidelines as Yori tensed to attack Ron while he was in his meditative state. Ron sensed Yori's tension yet remained passive and calm, calculating her movements by feeling the shifts in the air around them. Sometimes, during these training sessions, his thoughts would unconsciously drift to Kim, but not at the moment. He was completely focused on his objective...Beating Yori.

The past two weeks had been exhausting, and not just because of the rigorous training he had to endure 16 hours a day. His efforts in evading Yori and her attentions were slowly but surely draining him of his energy.

Frankly, he was sick of avoiding her, sick of reminding her over and over again that he was spoken for, sick of raw fish, and most importantly, sick of being away from Kim. Talking to her over the communicator wasn't enough any more. He wasn't satisfied with seeing her face and hearing her voice. More than anything, he wanted to touch her, to feel her small body tightly wrapped in his arms again. He didn't think it was possible to miss anybody as much as he missed Kim.

But here he was, once again losing his focus. He quickly shut his mind down and concentrated on the feel of the air around him. And not a moment to soon...in the next instant Yori's right fist shot out to try and catch him off guard. He swiftly caught it in his own fist before opening his eyes and twisting her arm painfully behind her back with a triumphant smirk in her direction.

But she wasn't that easily defeated. She jabbed her left elbow hard behind her, but he ducked before it could make contact with his nose. This allowed her to get her right arm free from his grasp. They both whipped towards each other and squared off, Yori with her arms up defensively and Ron with his arms at his sides in a relaxed stance.

He still hadn't gotten used to fighting Yori instead of Kim. It was weird how different their fighting techniques were. Yori's movements were deliberate, precise, and text book perfect while Kim's were graceful, quick, and completely unexpected. She would flow from one fighting style to another easily, sometimes in mid-punch. Even after watching her fight, sparring with her himself for 7 years, and becoming familiar with most of her moves, she still caught him off guard every time they fought.

Before he knew what was happening, Yori's foot kicked out towards his head. Letting his reflexes take over, he caught her foot and twisted it sharply, causing her to tumble to the ground. Without missing a beat, she hopped back onto her feet and swung her fist at his midsection with all her strength. She felt it make solid contact with his stomach and was satisfied by the whoosh of air she heard forced out of his lungs.

Using this to her advantage, she aimed a kick at his head and was once again satisfied to hear the thunk the contact made.

Ron's neck snapped to the side and he felt tiny pricks of pain shoot up and down his spine. He quickly recovered and squared off for the next attack. He watched carefully as Yori twisted around and shot her other foot at his head, but he was ready this time. He caught the foot easily and used her momentum against her by throwing her over his shoulder.

Not giving her a chance to recover, he quickly jumped on top of her and pinned her legs down firmly with his knees and her hands with his own. She struggled valiantly, but to no use. She had been defeated.

"Check and mate," Ron said smugly, careful not to let the pain from his throbbing stomach and neck show on his face.

Sensei glided over to them slowly with a huge smile gracing his wrinkled face, "Well done, Stoppable-san. I do believe that was your fastest time yet."

"Thanks, Sensei," he replied with a smile of his own. The master of the Yamanouchi school did not give out compliments very often, and to receive one from him was a great honor indeed.

He hastily got up off of Yori and turned to bow to Sensei, "You have taught me well."

"That I have," he said slowly, "But I'm afraid you are not done quite yet. We still have a while before you are ready to face your destiny."

"Sensei...what is my destiny?" Ron asked apprehensively for about the fifth time since he'd arrived. Usually, the only reply he received was a vague horizontal shake of the head so he wasn't really expecting an answer.

But to his surprise, today Sensei actually replied, "Your destiny is to protect the one you love."

For a moment, Sensei's words didn't register with Ron. He had to think for about two seconds before it hit him like a speeding truck. "Kim? KIM!" he asked in panic, "What's wrong? Is she okay? What does she need protecting from?..."

Sensei stopped him by holding up his hand, "For the moment, Possible-san is fine."

"For the **MOMENT**?" Ron screeched while feeling his heart plummet to the bottom of his aching stomach, "I need to get back to her! What if something happens to her and I'm not there? What if she's in..."

"Ron-san!" Yori cried, interrupting his rant, "She is fine!"

Both Sensei and Ron looked at her with surprise etched into their faces. She never spoke out, and she never ever raised her voice, especially to Ron.

"I am sorry. There is just nothing to worry about. She is only one person in the 6 billion that populate the earth, and she is in no danger," Yori quickly said, shame at her outburst tainting her voice.

"Um...," Ron gaped, "That's okay."

Ron quickly recovered himself and tried to contort his face back to his normal relaxed expression, but there was still worry evident in his features.

"If it will make you feel better Stoppable-san," Sensei told him patiently while looking at his expression, "You may go and contact your loved one to make sure no harm has befallen her."

"Thanks so much!" Ron made a hasty bow in Sensei's direction before dashing off to his room where he kept his communicator.

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Kim groaned as she slowly came out of a deep sleep at the insistent beeping of her communicator. The last thing she needed was another mission. She'd just fought Draken the night before, and she was bone tired. It had been much harder to defeat him because Ron wasn't there to help her.

Groggily, she reached for the communicator and pressed the on button, "What's the sitch, Wade?" she mumbled into her pillow.

"KP?!"

As Ron's worried voice filled her room, her head snapped up, "Ron?"

"Yeah. It's me," Ron's voice relaxed slightly when he saw her smile sleepily at him on the screen, "So you're okay then?"

"Okay?" Kim asked, confused, "Why wouldn't I be?"

Ron breathed a deep sigh of relief, "It's nothing. I was just calling to check up on you."

"Well yeah. I'm fine. Half of me is on the other side of the world, but besides that, I'm just peachy," Kim replied, unintentionally letting some sarcasm creep into her voice.

"I miss you too, KP. It isn't easy for me either you know," Ron admitted.

"Yeah I know," Kim sighed dejectedly, "Only two more weeks to go."

"Yeah. I'll be back in Middleton in no time," Ron said with all the cheer he could muster, "So how did the Draken mission go?"

The last time he'd talked to her had been the night before, and she'd just got called on a mission to stop Draken's latest scheme at his latest layer. "It went okay," Kim said cautiously, "Rufus was amazing. He disabled the device in no time. I hardly had to do anything."

She didn't see a need to mention the huge bruise dominating her upper torso from Shego's kick to her ribs, "So how's it going in Yamanouchi? Is Yori behaving herself?"

"It's going good. You should see my badical meditating skills, KP!" Ron clapped his hands, causing Kim to smile at his excitement, "And when it comes to Yori, you have nothing to worry about. You're the only girl I'll ever want."

"Good," Kim said as she curled her lips up in a half smile, " I miss you." She touched the screen softly and tried to see if she could feel Ron through the glass.

Ron felt his heart constrict at her tone and quickly replied, "I miss you more."

She rolled her eyes at his cheesy line while trying to hold back a huge yawn. Unfortunately, it managed to fight it's way out, but did not escape Ron's notice.

"I'll let you get back to sleep. It sounds like you had a long day," Ron said regretfully.

"No really. I can talk," Kim said through another yawn, "I'm perfectly fine."

"Don't lie to me," Ron said with mock severity, "You're tired."

Kim didn't even try to deny it as she felt her eyelids beginning to droop, and at that moment Ron would have given anything in the world to be there in bed with her cuddled in his arms instead of alone in his tiny room at Yamanouchi.

"I love you," Ron whispered to her.

"Love you too, Ronnie," Kim managed to get out before she fell back into a deep sleep.

Ron sat there for about five minutes watching her sleep and letting the longing he felt show in his face. He usually tried to hide how miserable he was for her sake. He didn't want her worrying about him. But as she slept peacefully, he let every emotion he was feeling wash over him. The sadness that he was so far away from her, the longing to touch her, the loneliness at being without her, and the love for every part of her.

Finally, at Yori's impatient tapping on his door, he shut off the communicator and went to join her for their next sparring match.

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I know that not much happened in this chapter, but I really needed to update. The next chapter is where the action will take place, so stay tuned. And thanks for sticking with me.


	13. Ninjas Attack!

1Kim Possible and friends belong to Disney. Brad belongs to me.

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"Kimmie!" Mrs. Possible called up the stairs the next morning, "Brad's here!"

Kim instantly came flying down the stairs, wincing at the pain in her torso as she jumped the last three steps. She scooped up her backpack and slung it over her shoulder before she kissed both her mom and dad on the cheek and told them goodbye.

"Have a good day, Kimmie-cub," her father told her from behind the morning newspaper, "And say hi to Brad for me."

"Will do, Dad," she called as she hoisted a squeaking Rufus from the table and placed him carefully in her pocket.

Her parents had quickly warmed toward Brad after Kim finally introduced him to them. As her mom put it 'He's so polite and such the gentleman'. While at first mention of him, her mother had been weary of his feelings towards her daughter, she now trusted Kim with him almost as much as she trusted Ron.

"Bye!" Kim called one last time before she rushed out the door to Brad's waiting BMW. She smiled at him through the tinted windows, somehow feeling his gaze on her through the black glass.

"Hey," she greeted as she opened the car door and the cool air from inside assaulted her face.

"Hey," Brad smiled in return, "You look pretty."

"Thanks," Kim blushed, looking down at her outfit. She was only wearing some denim shorts, flip-flops, and a tight white top. Nothing out of the ordinary...but it was still nice to be complimented all the same.

She tried to keep her face neutral and unaffected as she bent down and climbed into the car, but couldn't stop a grimace from clouding her face when her bruised ribs gave a throb of pain.

Brad noticed.

"What's wrong?" he asked, anxiety evident in his eyes.

"It's nothing," she replied, trying to cover up her pain with a smile.

Brad wasn't buying it.

"What's wrong?" he asked again, a sharper, more dangerous edge to his voice.

"Really. It's nothing," Kim hastily assured him, "I just got kicked in the ribs on my mission last night. It's nothing I'm not used to. I'll be fine."

"Let me see," Brad demanded in a firm tone.

"That's okay," Kim couldn't keep her voice from faltering, "That's probably not the best idea."

"..."

"You know...Ron. My stomach," Kim continued with an eye roll at his questioning gaze, "He probably wouldn't want you looking at it."

"Come on," Brad scoffed, "Don't you think Ron would want me to make sure you're okay? I mean, what do you think I'm gonna do? Feel you up?"

"No, of course not," Kim's responded immediately.

"Then let me see," Brad's eyes were persuasive, and his tone was calm and reassuring.

Kim finally nodded hesitantly and he pushed her gently back into her seat. She felt her body relax as he lifted up her shirt and scrutinized the purple skin bordering the bottom of her bra. She watched in apprehension as his face slowly went from soft and concerned to hard and angry.

"Who did this to you?" his voice was steely and determined.

His eyes flicked up to meet hers. "Kim, who did this to you?"he asked more forcefully when she didn't answer right away.

"I...it happened on the mission last night" she stammered, slightly shocked by the edge in his voice.

"You already said that, and it doesn't answer my question," she could see the hard resolve in his gaze.

"Well...it was Shego. We were fighting. Just like always," she tried to explain, "I'm fine. It happens all the time. You're bound to get hurt once in a while when you do what I do."

Wait...was she defending Shego? She didn't understand why she was trying to play off her injury like it was no big when it clearly was. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been hurt this badly on a mission. She usually managed to get away scot-free. Maybe it was because she could sense that Brad was seriously pissed and was not messing around.

"Shego..." Brad said softly, "That's Draken's sidekick?"

"Well, yeah. If you could call her that. She does most of the work."

Brad didn't reply. He just slowly traced his fingers up and down her flat stomach, never taking his eyes off the bruise dominating most of it. Kim shivered.

Just when she was about to say something about the awkweirdness of the sitch, Brad carefully pulled her shirt down over her bruise and wrapped his arms around her in a gentle hug.

"Once you belong to me, I'll never let anyone hurt you," Brad mumbled into her silky red locks.

"What?" Kim asked, her red flag going up when she felt his face dig into her hair. She remembered what Ron had said about how he felt when anyone else touched her hair, but before she could pull away from Brad, he quickly released her.

"I didn't say anything," Brad declared with conviction.

"Oh. I thought I heard you say something," Kim confessed, confused by his sudden mood swing.

"Nope. Didn't say anything," Brad announced once again before starting the car and speeding off toward Middleton High.

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"Is it just me, or is school only getting harder the older we get?" Monique moaned to Kim on their way to lunch that same day. She was referring to the Calculus test they had just taken the period before. Kim thought it had been challenging, but in a good way...not at all as bad as Monique was making it seem.

"If you're referring to the Calc test, then I didn't think it was all that bad," Brad offered his opinion with a shrug of his shoulders, "Don't you think you're being a little dramatic?"

Surprisingly, that was the exact same thing Kim had been thinking, but didn't want to say aloud for fear of hurting Monique's feelings.

Turns out, silence had been a wise decision on her part because Monique gave Brad an aggravated glare at his answer, "I'm not being dramatic, Mr. Perfect. Sorry if random numbers strung together don't make as much sense to me as they obviously do to you."

"Monique, calm down," Kim soothed her with a hand on her shoulder, "He didn't mean it that way."

"Oh! So now you're defending HIM?" Monique's voice was rising with every angry word as she batted Kim's small hand away from her shoulder. She pointed her finger at Kim's face accusingly, "I'm supposed to be you're best friend besides Ron, but you're defending HIM over ME?! Ever since Ron left, you've been spending all your time with him, blowing me off and making excuses every time I want to do something with you just so you can run off with HIM!"

"Monique, I..."

"Oh no! Don't try to deny it!" Monique was really making a scene now. They had made it to the lunch room and students were beginning to stare, "News flash, Kim! He! Is! NOT! Ron!" She punctuated each word with a firm poke to a startled Kim's chest.

"Hey!" Brad yelled at Monique, slapping her hand away from Kim, "Leave her alone! I don't know who you think you are, but if you keep this up, you WILL regret it!"

Brad's eyes were dangerous and threatening but that did nothing to stop Monique from shouting at him, "Oh will you just SHUT UP?! I wasn't even talking to you! I can't believe..."

Monique's shouts died away when she saw the pure hatred etched into Brad's face and the threatening way he was towering over her. She watched the anger grow in his eyes, but just when she thought he might actually hit her, her view of his figure was blocked by a head full of long red hair.

"Brad, stop!" Kim insisted sternly.

"Kim!" Brad looked at her incredulously, "She was poking you!"

"I think I can handle a few pokes," Kim smiled confidently, just to prove to him how perfectly fine she was.

"Just because you can, doesn't mean you should have to!" Brad glared at Monique over Kim's head, "Especially not by you're so called, 'best friend'!"

Monique was about to shout out a reply when Brick and Felix interrupted the quarreling trio.

"What's going on over here?" Felix asked, directing his question at Kim.

"It's nothing," Kim assured him with a calm smile, "Just a little disagreement is all."

"Disagreement my a...!" Monique began, but was quickly cut off by the unexpected sound of a deafening explosion. Kim and all of her friends were unceremoniously thrown to the ground since they were closest to the door.

Kim reacted instantaneously.

"Everybody get down!" she ordered at the top of her lungs to the crowded lunch room. Almost immediately, another explosion followed the first.

She jumped to her feet and rushed out of the lunch room as fast as her legs could carry her to see what was causing the commotion. She had a bad feeling in her gut, or as Ron would put it, a crummy tummy.

When she had made it out to the main hallway, she was shocked to see a large number of students running around in a frenzy. Some were trying to claw their way through the crowd to get out of the school. Others were watching in fascination as about eight ninjas clad only in black tried their hardest to force their way into her locker.

Her stomach plummeted into her shoes. The Pan Dimensional Vortex Inducer was in there! She knew that must be what they were after. Coming to the obvious conclusion, she felt the guilt cloud her senses as she realized that it was her fault all of her fellow classmates were in danger.

_No time to let emotions take over, _Kim thought to herself. _Head in the game, Kim._

And with that thought, she launched herself into the mayhem. Almost immediately she was set upon by three experienced ninjas.

Unfortunately for them, she was royally pissed and was not to be deterred so easily. The largest of the three lost no time in aiming a powerful kick to her head. She managed to seize his foot with a grunt and used his momentum against him to spin him around and swing his flailing body into one of the remaining two ninjas.

The two of them went flying through the air only to be halted abruptly by the row of unforgiving metal lockers lined up against the wall. Kim quickly turned her attention to the remaining ninja as they slumped into an unconscious heap on the hard hallway floor.

Before she had time to get into a defensive stance or even finish turning around, the faceless ninja planted his foot firmly into her already bruised ribs and gave her one of the most painful kicks she'd ever experienced in her life. Bright flashes of white erupted behind her closed eyelids as a wave of piercing pain rolled throughout her whole body. Seemingly from a distance, she felt herself fall to the floor.

On her hands and knees, she tried to take a few shallow breaths to clear the ringing in her ears, but felt her lungs seize up at the air she attempted to force into them. She began to cough uncontrollably, and each shuddering hack brought with it a new spasm of pain, until she realized that a warm liquid was dripping out of her mouth.

She stared down in surprise at the bright red blood, _**her**__ bright red blood,_ on the hallway floor in front of her, and gasped when she noticed in the tile the stealthy shadow of her attacker flip its way toward her. She whipped around, but knew she wouldn't have time to roll out of the way when she realized with a start that the ninja was almost directly upon her.

She tensed up and closed her eyes in anticipation of the pain she was about to experience...

But it never came.

She opened one eye cautiously and observed the surprising scene laid out before her.

Brad was wrestling fiercely with the ninja that had just tried to attack her. It was obvious that he had intercepted the ninja's attempted advance before the assailant could make contact with her sore body.

Somewhere in her mind there was a screaming voice demanding that she get up and help him, but her body refused to comply. Her eyes were glued to Brad's form, specifically his rage-filled eyes, as he forcefully knocked the panicked ninja's head roughly into his raised knee.

The crunching sound of bone on bone awakened something within her, and she hastily scrambled to her feet.

"Brad!" she screamed with all her might, but it came out raspy and harsh.

His head swivelled to face her and he let out a relieved sigh when he saw that she was okay..

"You need to get out of here!" Kim ordered with a slightly stronger voice.

"I'm gonna help you," he stated confidently, shaking his head.

"Brad!" Kim cried desperately, "It's not safe."

Before he had time to reply, two of the five remaining ninjas ambushed him. He grunted as one of them forced him roughly to the ground.

Kim rushed over to help, but before she could reach Brad's struggling figure, the other three ninjas flipped gracefully into her path. She sighed impatiently before positioning herself into a defensive stance.

"Who do you work for?" Kim asked irritably and was not surprised to receive no answer.

Instead, the bravest of the three lashed out with a right hook to Kim's face that she easily blocked with her forearm. Frustrated, the ninja swung more violently with his left fist, but was once again denied his target.

"Correct me if I'm wrong," Kim began smugly, "but aren't ninjas supposed to be deadly?"

The only response she received was an attempted kick to her head. She had been expecting this, and ducked before his lethal foot could make contact with her skull. Performing a swift leg-sweep on the unsuspecting ninja brought him crashing to the floor. She then quickly executed a graceful pirouette, lifting her leg about halfway through, and was rewarded with the feel of her small foot pounding into the side of his head.

Watching in satisfaction as he crumpled pathetically on the ground, she almost didn't notice the other two ninjas sprinting at her from each side.

Realizing what they were planning to do a split second before they did it, she dove forward and out of the way of the ninjas' merciless bodies. She couldn't see the collision, but she could definitely hear the two ninjas crash into each other.

Finishing her roll, she turned around and was relieved to see that all three ninjas were laying harmless and unconscious on the cold tile floor.

Before she had time to take a congratulatory breath, the sound of a pain-filled grunt behind her prompted her to spin around.

She was impressed to see Brad desperately trying to overpower the only remaining ninja. He'd obviously already knocked out the unconscious ninja at his feet, and looking up at him, Kim couldn't stop her heart from swooning slightly.

He'd done this for her. He was risking his life for her. She'd been pushing him away, always keeping him at arms length, and he was still putting his life on the line to keep her from harm. At that moment she knew that it was time to trust him, time to let him become the friend he'd been trying to become since they met.

An image of Ron's face popped unbidden into her head. He didn't like Brad. He wanted her to keep her distance from him.

_But he doesn't know Brad, _Kim thought. _If he could see Brad now, keeping me safe, he wouldn't be so distrustful of him. _

Kim was forcefully brought out of her thoughts by the sound of a man choking. She was shocked to see the ninja with his arm around Brad's throat in a death grip. Not pausing to think, she flipped behind the ninja faster than she'd ever moved before, and lashed her arm out to pinch a pressure point on the back of his neck.

The ninja swayed dangerously for a moment before slumping to the ground, bringing Brad with him.

"Brad!" Kim gasped as she attempted to extricate him from under the ninjas arm, "Are you alright?"

"I think so," was the shaky reply. He was still breathing deeply, trying to catch his breath, "Are you...okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about me," Kim insisted as she slipped on arm carefully under his armpit to keep him from collapsing, "Just try and catch your breath.

Brad nodded and concentrated on breathing in and out slowly.

"You were really brave back there, you know," Kim complimented, admiration evident in her gaze, "I...I think you saved my life when you stopped that one ninja from crushing me."

"All...in a days...work," Brad rasped hoarsely with a small smile in her direction.

"But I could have handled it on my own," Kim's pride wouldn't let her go without saying it, "You didn't have to get hurt for me."

Brad rolled his eyes, "You just said yourself that you probably would have died if it hadn't been for me."

"ALRIGHT PEOPLE!"a familiar bark echoed loudly throughout the hallway. Barkin forced his way through the crowd of amazed students gathered around Kim, Brad, and the fallen ninjas. "EVERYBODY GIVE THESE TWO SOME BREATHING ROOM!"

"Mr. Barkin?" Kim helped Brad stand on his own before cautiously approaching the intimidating teacher, "Would you mind if I go into an empty class room and contact Global Justice and my tech guru?"

"That puny Wade kid that sits at his computer all day instead of going out and getting some fresh air and exercise?!" Barkin asked with disgust.

"Ummmm...yeah," Kim answered simply.

"See that you do, Possible."

As she turned and headed towards the nearest classroom door, students scrambled to get out of her way, but she paid them no attention. She shot Brad an apologetic glance over her shoulder as she left him to fend for himself in the mass of admiring teenagers.

Clicking the door shut softly behind her, she whipped her communicator out of her pocket and pushed the button that would direct her to Wade.

The computer genius's face appeared on the screen before she had time to completely compose herself.

"What's up, Kim?" he asked as he took a lazy sip of his ever present soft drink.

"Wade, there's been some major drama on this end," Kim began, "Do you know anything about it?"

Wade put his cup down and gave her his undivided attention, "No. What happened?"

Kim quickly told him the whole story before finishing with a question, "Do you think you could get some GJ personnel over here ASAP to clean up the mess?"

"No problem," Wade answered confidently as he typed away rapidly on his keyboard, "They'll be there in about ten."

"And once GJ has them in custody," Kim began, referring to the eight unconscious ninjas, "do you think you could try to find out who sent them?"

"I'll do my best," Wade assured her with a nod of his head.

"Thanks Wade," Kim beamed at him in relief, "You rock in stereo!"

Kim didn't miss the blush on Wade's face as he quickly signed off, leaving her alone to ponder some suspicious unanswered questions in her head.

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"I told you not to let them hurt her!" Brad roared into his cell phone as he paced the length of his room repetitively. He stopped to stare at himself in front of the full length mirror located next to his dresser. His face was red and furious. His body was tense. He could see the muscles in his arm bulging while the muscle in his jaw twitched. The hand down at his side was clenched into a fist. The other was holding the phone to his ear as he bellowed at the woman on the other line.

"Did you accomplish your goal?" the woman's voice asked calmly from the other end of the line.

"Did I what?" Brad could hardly hear over the sound of blood pounding in his ears.

"Did you accomplish your goal?"

"Did I...," Brad repeated.

Comprehension suddenly dawned on his handsome face, "You mean did I jump in to 'save' Kim and help her fight off the ninjas? You mean did I let the ninja overpower me so she could act the hero and rush to my rescue? You mean did she tell me how totally brave I was for saving her life and now she can't keep her eyes off me?"

At the woman's impatient sigh, he continued, "Then yes. I did accomplish my goal. My plan worked perfectly...And you know what the best part is?"

"What?" the woman asked without interest.

"She totally believes the ninjas were there to steal the Pan Dimension whatever! I am so brilliant!" Brad now smiled proudly in the mirror while admiring his muscled physique and finely chiseled cheek bones.

"Then you should have no complaints concerning my men," the woman dead panned smugly.

Brad was jolted out of his daydreams involving Kim in a sexy slave outfit, complete with handcuffs, looking up at him adoringly as she begged for him to take her virginity from her.

"What?"

"If you accomplished your goal, you should have no complaints concerning my men," the woman repeated, "Regardless of the means it took for you to get there, you still got what you wanted...with my mens' help of course."

"I still told you I didn't want her hurt," Brad insisted angrily.

"Congratulations on your success, but I do believe this conversation is over," the woman told him, ignoring his statement, "I will contact you soon. Our time is almost up, and we have much progress to make before we can begin the final phase."

With that, the line went dead.

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Soooo...What did you think? Good? Bad? Can anyone guess who the woman talking to Brad was? It feels like I haven't written in forever, so some feedback would be much appreciated. Stay tuned for the next chapter!


	14. Revenge and Regret

1"Are we there yet?" Ron whispered impatiently to the stealthy ninja in front of him as they crawled cautiously through a narrow ventilation shaft.

Yori, not wanting to give away their position, didn't answer with words. Instead she looked at him over her shoulder with raised eyebrows and a shake of her head before quickening her pace slightly.

Ron stifled the sigh that threatened to escape his lips. He was anxious to reach their destination, but not for the reason Sensei had sent them here. He had his own personal reasons for wanting to reach Monkey Fist as soon as possible. Reasons that involved revenge.

He and Yori were _supposed_ to be retrieving some ancient simian artifact that Monkey Fist had stolen, but if he was being honest with himself, he didn't really care about some stupid monkey statue. The real driving force behind him was the promise of a fight with Kim's tormentor.

His jaw clenched as his thoughts strayed to Kim's confession in his bedroom the night before he'd left. He'd been trying to suppress the rage he felt toward Monkey Fist ever since Sensei told him about this mission, but without much success.

Looking up once again at Yori's backside, Ron tried to suppress his raging teenage hormones for the fourth...or was it fifth?...time in the past hour. As devoted as he was to Kim, the fact of the matter was that he hadn't had any physical contact (unless you counted kicks and punches, which he didn't) with the opposite sex in about two and half weeks...and Yori had a very nice butt (Although nothing compared to Kim's in his eyes). But Kim wasn't here, and if Ron had to guess, he would say Yori was purposely putting an extra sexy sway to her hips. He couldn't be sure.

All he knew was that Kim never moved this slowly on missions. During every mission he could ever remember being on with her, she moved quickly and stealthily and with purpose. Yori on the other hand, seemed to Ron to move much more slowly than necessary to stay quiet. And each time one of her knees moved forward, her hips would swivel sharply in the opposite direction.

Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth...

Ron shook his head and blinked his eyes rapidly to keep from staring stupidly at Yori's curvy hips. He was getting distracted, something that was unacceptable, according to Sensei, on a mission this important. And he was having some pretty disloyal thoughts, something that was unacceptable, in his opinion, unless Kim was the object of his admiration.

So he did what he'd become accustomed to doing every time he started to pine for Kim: close his eyes, take a deep breath, and imagine it was her with him. He imagined watching her crawl quietly in front of him. He imagined her telling him to keep his head in the game when she caught him ogling her butt. He imagined the joking reply he'd give. He imagined the way her lips would tighten as she tried not to laugh, then turn around to face forward and let her smile loose, thinking he wouldn't be able to tell.

The ghost of a smile graced his lips as he then imagined stealing a kiss from her when she paused and looked over her shoulder to make sure he was still close behind. He imagined her protesting at first, but giving in after a moment and returning the kiss passionately, like she always did in the end.

He imagined running his fingers through her long soft hair and imagined hers clasping his shoulders tightly. He imagined pulling her tigh...WHAM!!

He felt his body crash roughly into another smaller, softer body that he assumed belonged to Yori and felt the metal under them creak and give way. As his stomach whooshed into his throat, he opened his eyes wide in time to see the ground rush up to meet him. Reacting on instinct, he curled his body inward right before the ground slammed into him, and rolled up to his feet, looking around dazedly.

His dizzy eyes followed a groaning sound to the figure at his feet. Yori obviously hadn't thought quite as quickly as he had because she was currently splayed awkwardly on the floor at his side. He bent down and hauled her to her feet quickly.

"Did you not see that I had stopped, Ron-san?" she asked, pain and annoyance lacing her every word. Looking over herself, she began brushing the dust and dirt from her once spotless gi.

"Sorry," Ron apologized quickly, "I had my eyes closed."

Yori's head snapped up to look at him quizzically, "Why would yo..."

"STOPPABLE!" a deep voice bellowed menacingly in their direction. Yori's words halted abruptly and Ron whipped his head around as the voice struck a nerve deep within him. Monkey Fist was rushing towards them with dislike evident in his gaze. Looking into the ugly eyes of his greatest foe, Ron felt the white hot rage he'd been suppressing since the night before he left wrangle itself free of his careful control.

Monkey Fist wavered in his approach when he saw a bright blue light flash behind Ron's brown irises. The boy began stalking toward him furiously, and an unexpected flash of fear rippled through Monkey Fist.

"Go find the statue," Ron ordered Yori in a snarl. His words seemed to reverberate around the room loudly, even though they were barely above a whisper, "I'll handle Monkey Fist."

Sensing that this was not the time to argue, Yori bowed her head quickly before scurrying out of the room to begin searching for the monkey idol.

As the door clicked shut softly behind the female ninja's retreating figure, Monkey Fist stared at Ron in apprehension. Fear and excitement were battling to be the dominant emotion in his hairy body. But of course, he'd never let either show on his face. "What makes you think that you, pretender that you are, can fight me and emerge the victor?" Monkey Fist asked, stifling the emotions bubbling up within him.

"Don't you _**ever**_ touch her again," Ron hissed menacingly at the disgusting simian before him.

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean," Monkey Fist sneered back at him with a knowing look in his eyes.

"You sick, twisted son of a bitch!" Ron spat at him with a malice stronger than had ever found its way out of his mouth before.

Monkey Fist chuckled darkly, "Such harsh words for such an innocent little boy. You wouldn't understand things like lust, would you pretender?"

Ron didn't answer as his body was now shaking violently in barely contained rage.

Monkey fist only laughed harder. "No, I suppose not," he shook his head condescendingly, "You see, a man such as myself has needs. Being the loner that I am, I don't get around quite as often as I'd like."

He paused to wiggle his eyebrows suggestively at Ron's rigid form, "Kim Possible is rather good looking, as I'm sure you've noticed, and my monkey ninjas tied her up so nicely for me; it really wasn't all that difficult to have some fun with her."

He paused for a moment and a grimace clouded his large black unibrow, "But unfortunately, I never got very far with the little tramp. She fights dirty."

He looked down, grimacing at the spot between his thighs before continuing. "But I'm sure you've heard all about it," he chuckled humorlessly, "It sure took her long enough to tell you. I was expecting a visit from you much sooner than this."

"You're _**lucky**_ she didn't tell me sooner," Ron hissed, "Or you'd have been dead for a while now."

"Oooooooooooo," Monkey Fist mock shivered as a delighted smile lit up his face, "Death threats? My my... I suppose little Ronald is all grown up now. Isn't it..."

WHAM!

Monkey Fist lost his train of thought in a shower of pain. He was sure his neck disconnected from his spine for a moment as his head whipped backward at Ron's surprise punch. He tried to recover himself as the shock and pain raced up and down his body.

"I'm done talking," Ron was advancing on the simian quickly with fists raised and body tensed for a fight. As Monkey Fist opened his mouth to reply, Ron spun around in a roundhouse kick that collided with the side of his head. He unwillingly collapsed onto his knees at Ron's feet where the furious teen ninja proceeded to use Monkey Fist's prone form to his advantage by raising his knee swiftly into the spot between his eyes and mouth.

Ron smiled darkly at the crunching sound of the bone in Monkey Fist's nose breaking, followed immediately by his pathetic pain-filled wail. He looked without mercy at Monkey Fist breathing hard and fast through his teeth below him, and shook his head in disgust with growing impatience.

With an unsympathetic sigh, he reached behind Monkey Fist's head and grabbed a handful of the coarse, greasy hair there. With a rough jerk of his wrist, Ron forced Monkey Fist to look up at him so that they were eye to eye, "If you_** ever**_ touch her again, I _**will**_ kill you."

Simple words. And under normal circumstances, completely unthreatening (possibly even funny) to Monkey Fist. But looking at the fury in Ron's face up close, he couldn't help but feel the ripple of fear the words instilled run through his limp body.

Still, he was Lord Montgomery Fisk, and he did not go down without a fight.

So he spit a reply at Ron's tense face. "You just wait," he rasped angrily, "After I'm finished with you and she's crying over your dead body, there will be no one to protect her. I'll do things to her, you've never even dreamed of doing. That's for sure."

He watched in satisfaction as each of his words caused Ron's face to become angrier and angrier before continuing with a smirk, "Just thinking of her screaming and struggling under me..." He trailed off as a lust-filled expression dominated his face, "And it'll be your name she's screaming. You she's wishing will jump in and save her. But where will you be?...oh that's right. DEAD! And she won't have anyon..."

CRUNCH!

Monkey Fist wailed in agony when he felt the breath woosh out of him as one of his ribs give way under Ron's foot.

Looking up painfully at his attacker's face, Monkey Fist was surprised to see the pain etched there, rather than the anger he'd been expecting. It was with a deeply agonized expression that Ron choked out, "That will never happen."

Listening to these words, Monkey Fist knew he'd hit a nerve deep inside of the pretender. It gave him a little pleasure, in this sea of pain, to know that he'd at least caused Ron some emotional grief if not any physical pain.

He planned to use this to his advantage, but before he could get a word in, a deadly glowing-blue fist flashed towards his face once again. He tensed in anticipation of the painful fight to come.

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Kim took a long deep breath as she stood apprehensively outside her best girlfriend's house.

She'd come to Monique's house to apologize. For a while, she'd been mad at Monique for yelling at her in front of the whole school. But after a lot of fuming and a good twenty minutes spending some quality time with the punching bag in her basement, she'd calmed down considerably and realized that Monique had a point. She hadn't been spending as much time with her as she should have been.

After wringing her hands for a second longer, she finally worked up the courage to reach up and ring the doorbell. After a moment that seemed to drag on forever, she heard the doorknob click as someone on the other side turned it to open the door.

Monique stepped into the doorframe slowly, staring at Kim with some apprehension in her dark eyes. But as Kim looked closer, she also saw some of the same sadness and guilt she'd been feeling all afternoon reflected back at her.

After a tension-filled moment of silence, Kim finally broke it with one simple word, "Hey."

"Hey," Monique replied softly.

After another awkward pause, Kim cleared her throat to say something, anything, to make things right between them. The way they were before Ron left.

Then suddenly, "I'm sorry!" they both cried at the same time.

"You're sorry?" the exclaimed in unison once again.

They stared at each other for another moment before throwing their arms around each other in a huge hug.

"I was such a jerk to you, girl," Monique admitted with tears streaming down her face.

"No, _I've_ been the jerk," Kim confessed, feeling tears of her own welling in her eyes, "I've totally neglected you these past 2 weeks."

"That's no excuse for the way I yelled at you in front of everyone," Monique wailed into her ear.

Kim pulled away gently from the hug as she felt her eardrums start to throb, "Still, this whole thing is my fault. I promise to spend more time with you."

"Don't worry about it, GF," Monique assured her as she wiped her streaming eyes with the back of her hand, "I overreacted about Brad. I understand that you like him, and he seems like a good guy. It's just that..."

She paused her, looking at Kim wearily.

"Just that what, Monique?" Kim asked, steeling herself for whatever Monique was about to tell her.

"Just that, well," she paused again and took a deep breath, "It seems like you've already forgotten about Ron, the way you act around him. Like there's no one else in the room but you two."

Kim sighed, "I haven't forgotten about Ron by a long shot. I think about him all the time...but don't you understand? That's why I spend so much time with Brad. He makes me laugh and takes my mind off Ron. He's made the past two and a half weeks go by so much faster than they would have otherwise."

"And," she continued, remembering something that she knew would warm Monique toward Brad considerably, "I swear to God, he saved my life at school today."

"He did?" she shrieked, "What happened? It had something to do with those ninjas didn't it? Tell me!"

Kim giggled happily with Monique as they walked deeper into her house, glad to have the tension between them gone, "Well, I was totally down for the count on the floor and I saw this ninja flying at me, but I knew I wouldn't have time to roll out of the way..."

As Kim recounted the story, Monique listened raptly, gasping in all the right places and interrupting loudly to state her opinions whenever Kim tried to pause for dramatic effect. But Kim didn't care. She still couldn't believe that it had only taken about five minutes for her and Monique to make up...but she supposed that's what best friends were for.

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Ron staggered into Yamanouchi late that night, bloody and bone-tired with Yori trailing behind, clutching the stolen mystical monkey idol.

Someone looking at him would have wondered how anyone looking so bruised and beaten could be smiling so contentedly, but as it was, there was no one there to witness their return as they were all sleeping peacefully in their dorms.

As much as he knew he should feel guilty for putting Monkey Fist into a coma, Ron couldn't help but feel satisfied. In fact, this was the happiest he'd been since he'd kissed Kim good-bye at the Middleton Airport. In his opinion, Monkey Fist had gotten what was coming to him. No one abused his girlfriend and got away with it.

The two young ninjas continued to walk in silence to their rooms, Yori still holding the idol tightly to her sizeable chest and Ron, lost in his triumphant thoughts. When they finally reached Ron's door, he quickly opened it and stepped in, turning to close it softly behind him. Before he could do so, however, Yori swiftly stepped into the room after him and placed the monkey idol reverently at the foot of his bed.

"Ron-san," she whispered to him in the darkened room, "It was an honor to fight at your side tonight. You showed much strength in defeating Monkey Fist without help or hesitation."

Hearing a strange throb to her tone, Ron turned his head to look at her questioningly. He noted fearfully, that her eyes were wide with open adoration, and that he and Yori were the only two people still awake in the deathly silent ninja school.

"Huh-ha," he laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck in a characteristic gesture as he took a step back, toward the wall, "It was no big really. It was kinda personal anyway. I didn't even..."

Before he knew what was happening, he was silenced abruptly by soft wet lips crushing his.

Too shocked to do anything but stand there stupidly with arms hanging limply at his sides and eyes open wide, he realized that Yori was kissing him. Not just kissing him, but, like, full on making-out with him. He felt her arms wrap themselves tightly around his neck in an iron grip, and felt her body press against his in an unfamiliar way.

He stumbled into the wall behind him, where she took advantage of his position and surprise by crushing herself into him impossibly tighter with a passion that surprised him even further. A warning bell went off in his head, but he was still too stunned to take action.

As he waited for his body to start functioning properly again, he noticed absently that Yori's lips tasted all wrong. Not at all like the strawberry lip gloss that Kim always wore, but like cinnamon. Strange. And her breath tasted like some kind of exotic Asian spice. Not like the hot minty breath that escaped from between Kim's lips whenever they kissed. None of it felt right.

Her hair was too short. He couldn't run his fingers through the straight jet-black locks like he could with Kim's silky red folds. And it didn't smell like lilacs and strawberries like Kim's always did either. It smelled like jade and jasmine. Foreign.

And she was too tall. In order to kiss Kim's pink lips, he had to bend down a lot further than he needed to in order to kiss Yori's brown ones. It only took a slight tilt of his neck for his and Yori's lips to connect. This was also strange to him. He was used to bending down.

And she was too wide. His arms completely encompassed Kim when he held her, overlapping each other so much so, that anyone watching would hardly be able to see Kim within them. Yori, however, was perfectly visible, with the top of her head just tall enough to reach his now closed eyes.

And her body was too soft against his, too padded. He was used to his hand resting against the hard bone of Kim's hip, not the soft curve of Yori's side. Was used to feeling Kim's collarbone jutting out under his hand whenever he touched her neck. He couldn't even feel Yori's. He noticed that Yori's ears were bigger too when he felt his thumb smooth over one of them. Nothing like the tiny little pair he was always blowing into when he kissed Kim.

And her boobs were so big that she couldn't even press herself completely against him, though not for lack of trying, because of the padding they created between the two teens. Kim fit right up against him perfectly, every inch of her skin touching some part of him. The perky mound on her chest pressed up against his too, but didn't make it practically impossible to press her flat stomach into his.

Yori's butt felt different than Kim's too. Yori's was softer and slightly bigger, not as toned and not as rounded as Kim's. Not as easy to squeeze...

To squeeze...Kim's butt.

Yori's butt.

He was squeezing Yori's butt!

Oh my God! What was he _doing_?

He suddenly and violently pushed Yori off of him, having to use all of his strength to do so. She stumbled back, tripping over the leg of a chair and falling onto his bed as he trembled in the corner, breathing hard and fast, feeling sick to his stomach.

What had just happened? What had he _done_!?

He tried to sort through his racing, jumbled thoughts.

Yori had kissed him.

And he'd kissed back...

It hadn't been long. He knew that. Even though it had felt like forever, the passionate kiss had only lasted about 10 seconds.

What was _wrong_ with him? His whole life ruined for what?... 10 seconds of pleasure?! And not even real pleasure! Nothing compared to the total and complete contentment he felt when he was kissing Kim. Not even close.

As the realization that he'd just cheated on the most beautiful, most perfect girl in the world fully hit him, he distantly felt himself crumple to the floor.

Why, why, why...why had he been so stupid? Why had he let his stupid hormones get the best of him? Kim...

Kim.

Kim was gonna be so mad.

But worse than that...she was gonna be so hurt.

He buried his head into his hands, more disgusted with himself than he'd ever been in his life.

And after all the times he'd reassured her. Told her that she was being silly for ever thinking he liked Yori more than her. Told her that she was the only one he would ever love. Told her that nothing would ever happen with Yori and she had nothing at all to worry about.

It was all a lie.

Or at least to her it would be. He knew that Kim was the only girl he could ever love, knew she was the only one he wanted to spend his life with. But she didn't know that, not for certain, regardless of how many times he'd told her.

His mind flashed to that night in the car, when she'd spilled her heart out to him, laying out all of her insecurities for him to see and judge. He'd tried his hardest to build her self-esteem back up. Told her she was the most beautiful girl in the world. That no girl could ever measure up to her.

And then after all that...he'd kissed another girl. And not just any girl. Yori. The one she'd been worried about from the beginning.

He was a monster. An absolute dirtbag. Scum. Filth. He didn't deserve a girl as wonderful as Kim. He didn't deserve anyone.

As he felt the inevitable tears begin to stream down his face, he hated himself so much that he just wanted to die. He wanted a meteor to fly down from the sky and rip him into little pieces of burning flesh. He hoped it was painful. He hoped he suffered.

Then as he was wallowing in his own grief, a tentative hand rested itself on his shoulder and he heard a soft voice above his right ear.

"Ron-san?" Yori asked worriedly, "Are you alright?"

After a moment trying to compose himself enough to speak, he gave up and managed to choke out, "Just get out. Please."

Yori hesitated, not sure whether to press her company on him or not. Even though she knew that what she had done had completely destroyed him, she didn't regret it. She'd been dying to kiss him for so long now, and whatever came after was totally worth it. But he looked so broken that she felt she had to try again, "Ron-san. It will be alright."

She moved to wrap herself around him in a comforting gesture, but the second her arms made contact with him, he shoved her roughly back.

"I SAID GET THE HELL OUT!" he yelled at her as she looked at him, startled and hurt.

He was sure he'd woken the whole school up, but he didn't give a damn. He just buried his head into his knees and listened to Yori's retreating footsteps scurry out his door before shutting it softly behind her. Then, when he thought he it wasn't possible to feel any guiltier than he already did, he realized that he felt bad for yelling at her.

God, he was a moron. He felt the tears come faster.

After sitting, curled up in the corner, hating himself for a good half hour, he decided it was time to stop putting of the inevitable.

He needed to call Kim. He had to tell her what happened.

As much as he didn't want to, she needed to know. If there was any chance for their relationship to survive this he had to do all he could to help.

He would not just let her go. Not when they were so perfect for each other.

He would stand outside her door, get down on his knees, and beg for her to forgive him every day of the rest of her life if he had to...but he would not give up. He needed her more than he needed food to eat and air to breathe.

So he took a deep breath, wiped the tears from his eyes, and hit the speed dial number one button on his communicator.

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Wow. Drama, drama, and more drama! I'm really sorry it took so long for me to update, but I hope the chapter was good enough to be worth the wait. Please leave a review to tell me what you think!


	15. Confession

Kim walked into her house, smiling contently, as she replayed the afternoon with Monique in her head. It felt good to have her best girl-friend on her side again. They didn't fight often, but on the rare occasion that the claws did come out, they always seemed to make up so quickly and absolutely, that Kim had a hard time remembering what they had fought about in the first place.

In fact, now that she thought hard about it, the only other instance she could remember having a big fight with Monique was when they were competing for Hirotaka's attention the year before. She continued to smile to herself as she remembered Hirotaka and how infatuated she had been with him. Now, the idea that she would want Hirotaka, or anyone like him, was crazy.

Not now that she had Ron. Now that she had someone who loved her wholeheartedly and unconditionally. Someone that had stood firmly by her side since they were in Pre-K.

And besides, Hirotaka was a total player, and Ron had eyes only for her. As far as Kim could tell, he'd never let his eyes wander or even glanced in another girls direction. He was constantly reminding Kim of how much he loved her.

Thinking of Ron reminded Kim that she needed to call him to tell him about the ninja attack in the school. She had debated with herself on whether or not she should even mention it to him, afraid that he would worry needlessly, but also understanding that this was definitely something he would want to know. In the end, she'd decided that she would tell him, but leave out a few of the more gruesome details (like her coughing up blood). He didn't need to know about that.

As she plucked her communicator from her pocket, she plopped down onto her living room coach, settling herself in for a long chat with her boyfriend. Her parents wouldn't be home from work for another few hours at least and the tweebs were over at a friend's house, so she had all the time in the world to enjoy Ron's company via the communicator. She glanced at the clock on the wall beside the TV and guessed that he would probably either be sleeping or getting ready to. She hoped he wouldn't be too tired to talk to her. Even though she played off the ninja attack like it was no big, it had actually unnerved her deeply. The idea that her saving-the-world exploits could interfere with her school life and the people she knew and loved at said school (as well as the ones she didn't love quite so much) was deeply unsettling to her.

As she was thinking this through, the communicator tinkled its familiar tune in her hand. She looked down at it in surprise before hitting the answer button curiously.

"Ron?" she smiled in surprise when she saw his familiar face staring back at her. What wasn't familiar was the look of guilt and pain dominant in his features. Was there some way he'd already heard about the ninja attack? Maybe Sensei could somehow see what was happening to her half way around the world. He had always been able to do weird mystical stuff like that, so she thought it was possible. She hoped not. She'd wanted to be the one to tell him so she could reassure him that everything was fine. The last thing she wanted was him overreacting and doing something stupid, thinking she was in some sort of nonexistent danger.

He opened his mouth to say something, but she cut him off before he got the chance to start ranting and worrying about her needlessly, "Look, I'm totally fine. The ninjas didn't get the Pan Dimensional Vortex Inducer, and they're all locked up now. I swear I'm not hurt….well besides the part with the ribs, but it's so not the drama so don't worry. And no one else was hurt either. Besides Brad. But other than that not one person in the school was injured and I don't think……."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Ron interrupted her. "What?!" His eyes bugged out of his head as his brain processed this unknown bit of information, the self loathing he'd been feeling momentarily absent.

There was a moment of silence as Kim caught her breath and shot a confused look at Ron's face into the communicator. Wasn't the ninja attack the reason he'd called?

"The ninja attack," Kim told him confusedly, "I was about to call and tell you what happened, but then you called me before I could. I thought you were gonna start freaking out about it."

"Ninja attack?" Ron exclaimed, "Ninjas attacked you!?"

"I…..I thought you knew," Kim stammered. So he hadn't known. Just great! She'd done it now.

"And they hurt your ribs?!" the pitch in Ron's voice rose with every word. His imagination ran away with him. An unwelcome picture of a merciless ninja kicking Kim repeatedly in the ribs while another held her down came unbidden into his mind. By now he was practically hysterical, "Are you okay?"

"I'm…."

"Of course you're not; what am I asking," Ron started ranting like a lunatic, complete with his hands pulling at the hair on his head, "Ninjas attacked you and the rest of the school, and you were the only one there to fight them. And you got hurt! I'll be on the next jet over, I don't care what Sensei says. You shouldn't have………"

"Ron!" Kim cut him off before he could do something rash or pass out from lack of oxygen, "I'm fine! I'm just a little bruised. Nothing I can't handle. And Brad helped me, Ron. I know you don't like him, but he totally had my back. He was amazing! You should have seen…….."

"Brad?" Ron knew there was no way he should be feeling jealous of Brad just because he'd been there when Kim needed him instead of half-way across the world fighting some evil twisted monkey. He had absolutely no right to feel jealous. Especially not after what he'd just done with Yori. That reminded him of the reason he'd called, "Look, Kim, there's something I need to tell you……before I loose my nerve."

While normally this statement wouldn't have had much of an affect on Kim, the hesitation in Ron's eyes made her nervous and anxious to hear whatever it was he had to say, "What is it?"

"Look," Ron's eyes were so sad that she felt her heartbeat quicken. Her natural reaction was to find a way to make him feel better, but she didn't know what to do. Or even what was wrong, "I love you so much Kim. More than anything. And I want you to know that I will always be there for you, whenever, wherever you need me. And I never wanted to hurt you like this.…"

He paused as a fat tear spilled over his eyelids. He gathered himself and tried to continue, "I love you. And I want to be with you forever, but there's something I have to tell you…………."

"Wait," Kim commanded him incredulously, "Are you breaking up with me?" She couldn't believe it. She **wouldn't** believe it! Not until he said it. If that happened, she didn't know what she'd do. Her world would be over. She could feel it all start to crumble. The whole foundation she'd built her life upon. All of it was hanging by a thread. Hanging on his next word.

"No," Ron told her softly, and Kim instantly felt the world right itself again as she let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, "I'm not breaking up with you…But you might want to break up with me after you hear what I've done."

She eyed him skeptically, seriously doubting she'd ever want to break up with him. She was still just so relieved that he wasn't ending it. The possibility that their relationship would end had honestly never occurred to her. She'd always thought of them as together forever, "Doubt it, Ron."

"Kim, I cheated on you," Ron spoke the words quickly and softly, his eyes downcast with self-hate and shame. The sooner he told her, the less she'd say that she might regret later. He wouldn't make her promise to stay with him before he told her what had happened. He wouldn't try to trap her with her own words.

Kim stiffened but felt nothing at first. It had to be some sort of sick joke. She couldn't react. It was like a blow to her stomach and her system just wasn't taking it, "What?"

"I cheated on you," Ron choked out the words, full tears streaming down his face, "With Yori……I kissed her….I'm so so sorry."

There was a long tensely-charged pause while Kim's brain processed this new information. The more it processed, the angrier she became. Thoughts and ideas invaded her mind. Yori's throat constricting between her iron hands. Yori's beautiful exotic face beaten, bruised, bloody; distorted by Kim's merciless limbs flashing out and striking wherever possible.

Ron wouldn't think the exotic Asian was so beautiful then, would he? When her nose was smashed up into her skull and her lips were busted open? He wouldn't want to kiss swollen bloody lips, would he?

Before, she had welcomed the violent images invading her mind. The brutality of beating Yori to a pulp. But a new picture now presented itself front and center in her head before she could do anything to stop it. A horrible one that set her heart aflame and her mind on shut-down. Ron holding Yori tightly to his broad chest. The way he'd held _her _only two and a half weeks before.

Ron and Yori kissing passionately. The way he'd kissed her only two and a half weeks before.

Ron and Yori smiling at each other happily. The way he'd smiled at her only two and a half weeks before.

Ron's fingers twining themselves in Yori's hair, Ron's arms encircling Yori in a loving embrace, Ron's lips capturing Yori's possessively, Ron's tongue invading Yori's mouth.

Ron's big hands gently removing Yori's gi, touching her and kissing her the same way he'd touched Kim only two and a half weeks before.

All these images flashed through Kim's head in a split second. It was too much. The anger drained out of her as quickly as it had come and in its place only grief and bitter jealousy were left.

She hadn't even realized she'd been crying until Ron started reassuring her rapidly to try and make her feel better.

"Kim, I don't love her," he said as if he could read her mind. He probably could, they knew each other so well, "I love **you**. I made a horrible, awful mistake. One that I swear to God I will never make again…….."

He paused for a moment while Kim stared at him, with silent tears making tiny rivers down her cheeks, " I'm not just gonna let you go, Kim. I know I don't deserve you, but I need you. I'll do whatever it takes to win back your trust. I'll never give up. But you've gotta believe me when I tell you that I love you more than anything else in this world. A thousand times more than I could ever love Yori."

"I can't," Kim couldn't breath. She couldn't think. She wanted to be mad at him, she really did, but whenever she looked into his eyes, all she saw was the love for her and the agony for what he'd done present there. The warm chocolate eyes that had held hers since they were four. She loved him. How could she not love him? He was her everything.

But he had kissed Yori. He'd cheated on her. She wanted to be mad at him so she took action before she could do anything as stupid as forgiving him. She ended the conversation, "I can't talk to you right now."

The hurt look that crossed Ron's face at her harsh words made her regret them, but she didn't take them back.

Two conflicting emotions were battling within her. The first, her anger towards Yori, was threatening to takeover. The thought of the exotic temptress touching Ron, _her_ Ron, in places only Kim herself had touched before made her so mad, a red haze clouded her vision. In her eyes, Ron's body belonged to her as much as her own body did.

The second emotion was, sadly enough, the want she felt for Ron to touch her. She needed the assurance that he still loved her, still thought she was pretty. She wanted him to hold her and tell her how sorry he was. She wanted him to try to make it up to her with well-placed touches and kisses. She wanted him to make her forget what he'd done with another woman, wanted him to wipe everything from her mind except for his lips and his fingertips.

And the fact that, even after he'd kissed Yori, she still wanted Ron to touch her, still needed his approval and assurances, scared her more thoroughly than any crazy evil villain ever could.

So she did what she'd always done when her weaker emotions got the best of her. She ran away from them.

"I'm sorry."

That's all she said before she pressed the end call button on her communicator. Ron's tear stained face was immediately removed from her sight, and she hated that she wanted it back.

Why did he have to do this to her? They had been so happy together. Why did he have to go and ruin it because of a month apart? Could she ever forgive him for what he'd done to their relationship?

She knew the answer to her own question immediately. Of course she would forgive him. Eventually. As much as she might want to stay mad at him forever, she knew that forgiveness was inevitable. Yes, he'd kissed another girl. Yes, he'd done the one thing she had feared from the beginning. Yes, he'd made an unforgivable mistake.

But forgive him she would…because he meant that much to her. And deep in her heart, she knew his feelings toward her had not changed. He still loved her as much as he had two and a half weeks ago. Yori had not changed that.

The irresistible pull that they felt for each other was still consistently present. The strong chain connecting them had not been broken or even damaged by Ron's dishonesty. She still needed him. He still needed her.

She let the communicator fall from her limp hand. As she listened to it clatter to the floor, she put her arms around her legs and buried her head into her knees. Now, that there was no one to hear her she let loose a series of heartbroken sobs, wanting more than anything for the last fifteen minutes of her life to be erased from her memory.

She didn't know how long she sat there on the crouch, crying harder than she could ever remember crying before. But after what seemed only a few minutes, she heard the doorbell ding it's familiar tune.

She looked up, startled that someone would intrude upon her moment of grief. Her parents still weren't due home for another few hours. Were they early?

The doorbell pinged again, impatiently.

Her curiosity piqued, Kim stood up shakily and wiped her eyes with the back of her sleeve. She walked to the front door slowly, sniffing the last of her tears away.

She hesitated when she reached the front door. She probably looked a mess, but she realized that she honestly didn't care. Nothing mattered much anymore except for the serrated knife Ron had thrust into her swollen heart.

Swinging the door open sharply, she looked up to see a familiar face smiling down at her.

"Hey Ki…." Brad began to greet her, but halted mid-sentence when he noticed Kim's puffy red eyes. He felt the momentarily dormant anger inside him begin to swell when he realized that someone had made her cry.

"What happened?" he asked her as soothingly as he could manage. He waited impatiently for her answer, but it never came.

Walking swiftly into her house, Brad wasted no time in hugging Kim's quivering body protectively to his wide chest. Kim's initial reaction was to pull away, but she didn't. Normally, she would have, but how could Ron possibly judge her for hugging Brad when he'd kissed Yori? In her opinion, she had every right to hug him.

Not to mention she really needed the contact comfort at the moment.

"Who made you cry?" Brad asked gently into her ear. He didn't even know who it was, but he wanted to strangle them for making her sad.

She struggled to say the words out loud. She knew they'd sound so much worse coming out of her mouth than they did in her mind, "Ro…….Ro……"

"Ron?" Brad asked. Kim nodded silently while Brad pondered what perfect little Ronnie could have done to make her cry, "What did Ron do?"

"Ron," Kim paused for an impossibly long moment. She knew she shouldn't be sharing her personal problems with random people who showed up on her doorstep, but Brad wasn't a random person. He was her friend. A good friend. And she needed his opinion right now. She had to know that she was right in hanging up on Ron.; right in reacting so strongly. So she blurted out the truth, "Ron cheated on me."

Brad's pulse pounded deafeningly in his ears as his brain processed this bit of information. A wonderful, bubbling excitement was building up inside of him. Ron had cheated on her! This was his moment to step in and be the shoulder for her to cry on, "You've got to be kidding me." He pretended to be disbelieving when he was actually suppressing a grin.

Kim shook her head sadly into his chest, "No."

"But how could he possibly cheat on you?" Brad played the part of an outraged best friend flawlessly, "He said he loved you!"

Far from helping, this only made Kim feel worse. That was exactly what she had thought too.

"I know," she sniffled. But her words turned hard as her thoughts settled on the reason Ron had strayed from her arms, "But that didn't stop him from kissing Yori."

"Yori?"

"This ninja whore in Japan," Kim explained furiously, "She's always had a thing for Ron, and the moment he arrived there, she was all over him! I don't know why I didn't stop it then! The little temptress slut seduced him with her ninja skankness!"

As he listened to Kim, Brad's mind was working out all the brilliant ways he could twist this situation to his advantage. There were so many possibilities! The first thing he needed to do was place all the blame on Ron's shoulders. It wasn't very often Mr. Perfect Boyfriend screwed up.

"Well," Brad began, gently pushing Kim's head down to rest on his shoulder, "While Yori definitely deserves some of the blame, she isn't the one that's in a relationship. It seems to me that Ron should take most of the blame here. He's the one that has a girlfriend. A beautiful, wonderful girlfriend that any guy in his right mind would treat with much more respect."

He paused for a moment, letting his well-thought-out words sink in, "Kim, I know that if I were your boyfriend, I would cherish you above everything else. You deserve so much better than what he's given you. I would never take you for granted the way he has. I'd make you the happiest girl in the world."

Brad waited anxiously for Kim's reaction to his pretty words. It was perhaps one of his best speeches ever, but since he couldn't see her face, he had no idea if Kim's silence meant she was too overwhelmed to speak because of his monologue or too disgusted to speak because he was making a move after she'd just been cheated on by the boyfriend she'd known since Pre-K.

He'd finally laid it all down for her. He could feel his heart beating rapidly underneath her cheek as he waited in anticipation for any kind of sign that Kim had even heard him.

Finally, FINALLY, Kim squeezed herself tighter to Brad's body. Everything he'd said was exactly what she'd needed to hear, and she was grateful to him for making her feel better. However, the awkwardness of his words had not escaped her notice. She couldn't figure out if his goal was to boost her self-confidence or if he had really meant everything he'd said.

Brad took Kim's positive reaction to mean that she felt the same way. Maybe this was what she'd been waiting for all along! Maybe she'd always felt the same way about him but had been too afraid to do anything about it because she hadn't wanted to ruin such a long friendship with Ron.

Elation bubbling up inside of him like an oversized balloon, Brad pulled back slightly from Kim to look at her beautiful face. After all the work he'd put into winning her affection, had he finally won Kim's heart? Did she finally belong to him?

Too excited to think through exactly what he was doing, Brad tilted Kim's chin up. He lowered his lips slowly down to meet hers. Looking into her eyes, he could see the stunned surprise there, but he didn't stop his advance. This was what he'd desired for so long. This was what he'd worked so hard for. What had kept him up at night tossing and turning for hours, dreaming of tasting her lips. The lips that Ron had kissed countless times, but never fully appreciated. He was about to kiss her, finally. He closed his eyes, drawing closer and closer until he was only a hair's breath away……….…smooth cheek.

That was what his lips were touching. Not strawberry lips, but skin. Snapping his eyes open, he saw that Kim had turned her head away from him the moment before he'd kissed her and all his lips had found was cheek.

A combination of defeat and anger clouded his senses. She had turned away from him! Ron had cheated on her and she still wouldn't kiss him! What did he have to do to make her see reason?

As he looked closer, he saw that fresh tears were now leaking out of her closed eyelids. His anger focused itself inward. Why had he tried to kiss her? It was too soon. It hadn't been part of the plan, but he'd let his emotions get the best of him. Stupid, stupid, stupid!

"I think you should leave," Kim whispered to him, still not opening her eyes. She was shaking from head to toe, and more than anything he wanted to rewind and start over so that he'd never made a move on her. There was no way she'd let him touch her now. No way she'd allow him to try and comfort her.

So he did all he could think to do. He headed for the door.

"Sorry," he told her as he stood rigidly in her doorframe, "I let my emotions get the best of me."

She just nodded her head somberly, still not meeting his searching gaze.

He couldn't resist leaving without a few parting words.

"Just remember what he did to you. Remember that you were strong enough to turn away from temptation when I tried to kiss you, but he wasn't. You love him enough, even after what he did to you, to stay loyal to him, but he couldn't stay loyal to you when you've done nothing but love him since the day you two started dating."

She finally met his gaze and he fully saw the pain in her eyes for the first time. Without saying a word, she shut the door in his face. She stumbled to the couch drunkenly, but didn't make it before she collapsed on the carpet and dissolved into a fresh round of heartbroken tears.


	16. Forgiveness

1Over the next two days, the change that came over Ron was painfully evident to everyone at Yamanouchi.

Less than a week previous, some had viewed him as a bit too silly for his own good. Others had thought of him as the most talented, disciplined ninja of the decade. Regardless of what each ninja thought of him, Ron had been friendly to everyone and seemed to brighten a room upon entering it. He had smiled and waved and even gotten to know a couple of the more easy going students. As a result, the students had begun to smile back. And everyone had shown him the respect and admiration a Chosen One deserved.

But now, no one recognized the silent, somber ninja that looked as though he might collapse at any given moment. The warm chocolate eyes that were once bright and clear, if a bit distant, were now glazed and downcast with prominent bags under each. All the students gave Ron a wide berth when he happened to cross their paths, afraid that if they didn't move, he'd run straight into them before noticing they were there. A few of the nicer students still smiled and waved at Ron, but got no response in return.

In lessons, Ron's performance was miserable. Students he had once defeated soundly, now had him down within the first couple minutes of sparring. Many of his opponents felt no victory upon defeating him. It was like beating a zombie. There were bruises all over his body, but he hardly seemed to notice when his opponent would strike one of the many black spots with deadly precision. He didn't flinch when a foot was pounded into the side of his head or when he was painfully knocked to the ground. He didn't seem to feel any pain at all.

Little did the students know the pain he was suffering internally. His thoughts continuously centered themselves around the girl who had once been his girlfriend. He had no idea if he would ever be able to call her his girlfriend again. He'd heard nothing from her since he'd told her he'd kissed Yori, but not for lack of trying to reach her. He'd left her at least a dozen messages on the communicator, each one containing numerous apologizes and pleas for forgiveness.

But for the past two days, he'd still heard nothing. And until he did hear her voice again, he was stuck in this state of continuous internal suffering. After all, how was he supposed to concentrate on lessons and fighting when he'd just done something so heinous to the one person he loved above his own life?

So he continued to walk around dejectedly, noticing nothing, speaking to no one, and losing horribly to students he should have easily beaten in fights.

This behavior did not escape Sensei's notice, of course. Hoping his prized student's mood would wear off, he'd not said anything for the past two days, even though he'd noticed something was wrong the moment he saw Ron the morning after the unspeakable incident.

On the sidelines quietly observing Ron and Yori sparring, Sensei finally decided to discuss his worries with Yori before confronting Ron with them. Watching the two now, he could sense a deep tension between them. In fact, when Sensei had told Ron that he would be sparring with Yori that day, he'd noticed the hateful glance Ron had thrown at her serene face between narrowed eyes and the way his soldiers had slumped in defeat with a quiet exhale.

Yes, something had happened between them, and it was not good.

Focusing his attention back on the fight, Sensei was surprised to find that there was no fight to focus his attention on. Both students stood at a standstill, facing each other. Yori stood with her hands up defensively while Ron just stood. Neither one seemed to want to make the first move.

Becoming impatient with the stalemate, Yori finally took an easy swing at Ron's head, expecting him to block it and begin a retaliation. However, she was immensely surprised when she felt her fist connect solidly with Ron's ear, even letting out a slightly startled gasp. She hadn't actually wanted to hit him. She loved him after all.

Ron for his part, hardly moved an inch. He just stared openly at Yori's perfectly symmetrical face, wondering how he ever could have once thought her pretty. Now all he could think about when he looked at her was they way she'd felt pressed up against him and the way her lips had tasted. To any other healthy red-blooded male, this would be a pleasant memory to be savored. But to Ron, this memory brought with it the memory of Kim's tear-stained face along with the aching guilt that continued to unsettle his stomach. He couldn't bare to look at the exotic beauty anymore, but he also couldn't look away. It was almost like he was punishing himself by forcing himself to stare at the face that had ruined his life.

Sensei assessed the tense situation with growing concern, taking in the way Ron's eyes seemed to hold too many emotions to name.

Yori took in these same emotions, reading them differently than Sensei did. Seeing the guilt etched into Ron's face, she took it as guilt for pushing her away and yelling at her. And judging by the self-hate set deep into his cold brown eyes, she figured he must be extremely angry with himself for acting so rashly. The reason he'd been distant and refused to fight was probably because he was worried over how she'd react when she saw him. Maybe he thought she wouldn't love him anymore after he'd acted like such a jerk to her. But she wasn't mad, and of course she still loved him. All she had to do was wait until he apologized, and then she would forgive him and all would be well between them again.

While all this went through Yori's head, Ron continued to do nothing. Just when Yori was honestly considering throwing in the towel and forfeiting, Sensei stepped suddenly between the two, facing her.

"I must speak with you," he told her somberly, "you may go Stoppable-san."

Ron blinked a few times before bowing to his master half-heartedly and gliding silently out of the room. He wasn't going to argue if he got to escape Yori's presence that much sooner.

After watching Ron leave out of the corner of his eye, Sensei turned to Yori with a grave expression etched onto his aged face, "What has happened between you and Stoppable-san?"

Yori gave her master and father figure a startled look. She hadn't realized their love for one another had been so obvious.

"I believe Ron has finally realized his love for me," Yori said without preamble.

"Why would you believe such a thing?" Sensei asked incredulously.

"When we kissed, it was as though the universe opened itself and all it's secrets to me. I've never felt so alive before in my life," the girly sigh that escaped from between Yori's full lips did not escape Sensei's notice.

"That does not explain why you think Stoppable-san returns these same feelings for you when you know perfectly well that he loves Possible-san," Sensei reminded her sternly.

"He must have felt it too. The earth moved beneath us, I'm sure," Yori insisted stubbornly. "There's no way he doesn't feel what I feel. It's not possible to ignore something so strong. He must have enjoyed it as much as I did."

"No man enjoys it when a woman forces herself upon him, "Sensei's face chided Yori on her childish behavior without him ever having to say it out loud. "Does Possible-san know of the kiss you imposed upon her boyfriend?"

Yori's face fell at the reminder that Kim was still technically Ron's girlfriend, "I believe Ron-san informed her of it, but he didn't tell her that _I_ was the one who kissed _him_."

"What you did was shameful and honor-less," Sensei told Yori harshly. "You know I told you that Stoppable-san must choose his own destiny without any interference from you. You deliberately disregarded my request that you leave him to his own devices, and now you must pay the consequences. As your Sensei, I order you to call Possible-san and tell her what really happened. You must tell her everything, including the fact that you were the one to kiss Stoppable-san and not the other way around."

At Yori's horrified look, Sensei continued, "Do you not realize what your actions have done to Stoppable-san? Do you think only of yourself, selfish chid?....... Stoppable-san is devastated. He has been performing horribly in all aspects of his training. It is my belief that the cause of this is that Possible-san is angry with him. He cannot concentrate on his ninja training when the other half of him is angry. Without Possible-san's support, he cannot reach his full potential."

By the end of his lecture, tears were flowing freely down Yori's face. To be called honor-less was the worst insult a person could give another in their culture.

She knew she could not refuse her Sensei. He had ordered her and unless she wanted to be kicked out of the school, she had to do what she was told.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"At least _you_ love me," Kim sighed to the figure on top of her.

A tiny squeak of assent was heard from atop her head.

"Although that might be because I buy you cheese....."

Rufus patted her head sympathetically before burrowing himself deeper into her soft hair.

"I know you think Ron didn't mean it," Kim told hm with a resigned sigh, "but that doesn't change the fact that he did what he did."

When she received no response, she continued, "I know you think I should forgive him.......I mean I _want_ to forgive him, but....should I? Does he deserve to be forgiven?....... He's never done anything like this before, that's for sure. But still, he kissed Yori. And I _hate_ Yori. I hate Yori sooooo much."

Her mind began to wander off the subject at hand. Once again, she imagined a violent scene. This time, she was clutching fistfuls of Yori's silken hair after having ripped them forcefully from Yori's scalp. Crying in front of her, the once beautiful ninja was now ugly and bald. Who could ever think she was pretty after that?

Shaking her head, she brought herself back to the present. But her imagination had given her mind a new revelation......

This was all Yori's fault

It seemed like she could finally think clearly.

Ron had never even taken a second look at any girl except for her for as long as they'd been dating. Longer even, once she thought about it. So why would he kiss Yori out of the blue like that? The answer: he wouldn't.

She thought back to the conversation she'd had with Monique over the phone once she'd calmed down enough to talk to someone after Brad had left.

'Girl, stand by your Ron,' Monique had told her firmly. 'That boy adores you. Maybe he just made a mistake. Everyone does once in a while, you know. Even you, Miss Perfect.'

She now realized that Monique was right. Yori must have provoked Ron in some way in order to get him to kiss her. So he'd fallen into her trap. It was a mistake. Everybody make mistakes.

The smile that lit Kim's face after this thought registered in her brain seemed to wipe away every worry line between her brows. Her face transformed itself from the red and swollen mess it had been for the past couple of days to the youthful and glowing face she'd worn since the Junior Prom.

She would forgive him.

She would tell him that he could never do anything like this to her again, and she would forgive him.

"Rufus, I'm gonna let him off the hook," she admitted with relief to the mole rat that was now snoozing in her red locks, "Everyone deserves a second chance."

The communicator beside her bed beeped at that moment, startling Kim out of her happy thoughts.

Kim's swollen heart leapt into her throat. What if it was Ron? She'd already let so many of his calls go to voicemail. What if he was mad that she'd ignored him? But wait, he had no reason to be mad. _She _was the one who was supposed to be mad. So why did her stomach suddenly feel as if there were a million little bouncy balls bouncing around in it?

She snatched up the communicator and quickly hit the answer button before she could loose her nerve.

Expecting to see her boyfriends sheepish face, Kim was surprised to say the least when instead a smooth oriental woman's face appeared on the tiny screen.

"Yori?!" she exclaimed, her voice a mixture of confusion, disgust, and anger with maybe just a twinge of jealousy. But mostly anger.

"Greetings Possible-san," Yori calmly replied.

"What the fuck could you possibly want?" Kim snarled, all traces of confusion and jealousy gone from her voice.

For a moment, Yori was actually startled out of her calm facade. She'd never heard the perfect little miss priss actually cuss. But her face quickly transformed back into the smooth unemotional mask it usually was, "I need to tell you something. Something import......"

"If you're calling to tattle on Ron, I already know he kissed you. He told me himself," the look on Kim's face was smug. Her boyfriend may have trouble resisting sluts like Yori, but at least he was honest.

"No, that's not why I called," Yori said in a tone without inflection, "I called to tell you what really happened."

"What do you mean?" Kim asked suspiciously.

Yori took a deep breath as if what she was about to say was hard to spit out, "Ron didn't kiss me. _I_ kissed _him_."

Yori paused a moment, waiting to see if Kim was going to interject, but all that followed her statement was silence.

So she continued, "I cornered him in his room one night, after we defeated Monkey Fist. After, _he_ defeated Monkey Fist I should say. I did nothing to help. I might have been a bit infatuated with Ron-san before his arrival at Yamanouchi, but it has been growing since then. Most girls wouldn't understand, but I expect you would. Even though he is clumsy and a bit bumbling, he is so sweet and selfless and adorable that I just can't help but...um....admire him."

Kim gave an impatient sigh, "So I thought you called to tell me what happened with the kiss, not drool over _my_ boyfriend."

"Right. Anyway, everyone else was asleep as it was rather late at night. So I took my chance and kissed him. At first, he seemed too shocked to do anything other than stand there, but he eventually had to shove me off of him because I wouldn't let go. He told me to leave, but I wouldn't. He was crying and extremely upset - I imagine because he was thinking of what it would do to you to know what had happened - and I couldn't just leave him in his misery. So I tried to comfort him. But the second I laid my hand on his shoulder, he screamed at me to leave. So I did."

"Is that all?" Kim asked, keeping her face neutral even though warmth was flooding through her. So it wasn't Ron's fault after all. And he had been crying over it. A twinge of guilt knotted itself in her stomach. He obviously didn't deserve the cold shoulder she'd been giving him.

At Yori's nod, Kim continued, "Good. You're a bitch and I hate you for what you did, but regardless, I'm grateful to you for telling me the truth."

Yori just nodded again.

"Is Ron there?" Kim asked, "I need to talk to him."

"No," Yori answered harshly, "He doesn't know I'm talking to you. He's been miserable the past two days so take it easy on him."

"I wasn't planning on yelling at him," Kim scoffed disgustedly, "I'm done with being mad at him, not that it's any of your business. Now would you please go get him for me?"

Yori glared, but nodded and sashayed away.


	17. Trust and Love

1Ron was lying spread eagle on the mat in his room, staring blankly up at the ceiling. He'd been in this same position since Sensei had dismissed him about half an hour previously. He knew he should feel guilty and shameful of the way he'd been performing in lessons (Sensei had never dismissed him before), but try as he might to muster up either of these emotions, all he felt was blank.

It was as if all of his emotions had been used up. All of his guilt, all of his shame, all of his grief, all of his tears, had been used up on Kim.

He had planned to call her via the communicator after Sensei had dismissed him so he could leave her another apology-filled message, begging for forgiveness. Unfortunately, he couldn't find his communicator anywhere. After about five minutes of half-hearted searching, he'd given up and flopped down onto his bed. He wasn't worried. It wasn't as if there were many places it could have gotten to in the sparsely furnished room.

And maybe it was better that he wasn't leaving another message. Maybe Kim was getting annoyed with the many he'd already left her.

He wouldn't blame her. Communicators, telephones, messages.........all horrible ways to express to someone how deeply sorry you are. If he really wanted Kim to forgive him, he needed to apologize to her in person.

He vaguely recalled a happier time. A time before this whole mess. It had been during that glorious summer after the Junior Prom. He had been walking hand in hand with her at the mall. Kim had been the one who had wanted to go shopping. He would have been fine with camping out at her place and snuggling on the couch, pretending to watch movies.

"_KP, I don't understand the necessity of going to the mall once a week. I mean it's all the same stuff that was here last week!" Ron exclaimed._

"_Ron," Kim turned her head to look at up at him, giving him the full effect of her arched eyebrow, "Last week, there was no sale at Club Banana. Last week, everything there was full price. This week, everything is 25% off!"_

"_KP, KP, KP," Ron shook his head sadly as they stepped through the wide open door frame leading into Club Banana, "When will I get through to you? The clothes they sell at Smarty Mart are the same clothes they sell here, but they only cost half the price! Even with the 25% off!"_

_The smell of new leather boots and jackets and all the materials of designer clothing assaulted them at the same time as the overwhelming smell of Club Banana's signature scent. It was Ron's theory that the workers must spray the scent all over the clothes every morning before opening up because no matter what day of the week they walked in here, the scent was always strong enough to make a guy's eyes water. _

"_They are _**not**_ the same clothes," Kim explained, swiping a pair of a low cut boot-leg jeans off the nearest rack. She took her hand out of Ron's to flip them around and pointed to the small logo on one of the pockets, "Hence, the Club Banana logo on the back."_

_Ron looked at her for a moment, then gently took the pair of designer jeans out of her hands, folded them into a perfect square, and set them back on the rack Kim had taken them from. "All superficial nonsense, KP," Ron explained, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her close. He bent down and kissed her swiftly on the cheek, "All designed by the man to make girls think they need these clothes to look good, when in actuality, KP, you would look good dressed in a paper bag."_

_Kim smiled at him, "Aren't you a smooth talker?"_

"_Not putting my moves on you, KP," Ron admitted. "We'll save that for later," he whispered out of the corner of his mouth. Then in a normal voice, "Right now, I'm just being honest."_

_Kim glanced up at him to find him looking back at her with a sweet, innocent smile on his face. She reached up on her tiptoes to give him a quick kiss on the lips. _

"_How did I get to be so lucky?" she asked him with a grin, "Not many girls get to date their best friend."_

"_Ya know, it's weird, cause I ask myself that same question all the time," Ron answered with a mock puzzled expression._

_Kim grinned and opened her mouth to respond when the sound of a girl crying caught her attention. She turned toward the cash register where she saw Monique patting Hope sympathetically on the back. _

"_It's okay, girl. He didn't deserve you anyway," Monique soothed quietly, looking up. She spotted Kim watching them and gestured silently for her to come over and help._

_Kim grabbed Ron's hand and pulled him along with her as she made her way toward the two girls. _

"_What's happened?" Kim asked upon reaching them. Hope spluttered and hiccuped, trying to tell the story, but none of her garbled words were coherent. _

_Kim silently turned to Monique, raising a questioning eyebrow. _

"_Her boyfriend dumped her," Monique said quietly, giving Hope an extra pat on the back. This seemed to send Hope into a fresh round of tears. Kim looked at her sympathetically. _

_Monique put her hand beside her mouth, blocking her next words from Hope. "In a text message," she whispered fervently to Kim and Ron._

_Kim gasped. Ron looked puzzled. _

"_Oh Hope," Kim said sadly, joining Monique in rubbing her back consolingly, "Monique's right. He was a total jerk if he broke up with you in a text message. He doesn't deserve your tears."_

"_Uh, Kim?" Ron bent down to whisper quietly in her ear, "What's the big deal with the text message? I mean I understand being upset when you get dumped, but why does the text message thing matter? She was gonna get dumped either way."_

"_Ron," Kim whispered angrily, "You don't dump a girl in a text message. That's beyond heartless."_

"_But why?" Ron asked, still confused._

"_Becaaaause," Kim hissed in exasperation, "If you have something that important to say, you do it in person." _

If you have something that important to say, you do it in person.

If you have something that important to say, you do it in person.

Ron remembered those exact words coming out of Kim's mouth. In his opinion, an apology of this magnitude was _very_ important. So he must need to talk to her in person if he really wanted her to forgive him.

After all, what did he care about leaving Yamanouchi early? Sure, Sensei would be angry, but wasn't Kim much more important than some ninja school?

Yes. Yes she was.

So he would have to leave early to go apologize to her in person. That must be the only way she would forgive him.

He nodded his head in confirmation and, having made his decision, sat up to begin packing up the few belongings he'd brought with him.

A soft knock on the door halted his movements for a moment. Was it Sensei? Was he here to lecture Ron? To tell him how dishonorable he was being? To perhaps kick him out of the school?

Maybe he didn't need to sneak out of the school after all. Maybe Sensei would push him out the door.

"Uh," Ron said hesitantly, "Come in?"

Yori opened the door swiftly but silently, and took a graceful step into his room.

"Hello Ron-san," she said demurely, "Please come with me."

Ron's features hardened.

"I'm not going anywhere with you," he proclaimed angrily before turning back to his suitcase and shoving some more of his belongings into it.

"Please?" Yori asked quietly, almost pleading.

"Go away Yori," Ron sighed. He continued to forcefully throw things into his suitcase, hoping that maybe if he ignored her she would leave him alone.

She hesitated then answered, "There's someone on the phone for you."

"I don't feel like talking to anyone right now," he was having a hard time keeping the annoyance he felt from entering his voice.

"It's Possible-san," Yori whispered so quietly Ron thought he might have misheard her.

"Kim?" he asked, jerking his head up to stare hard at Yori's face, searching for any hint of dishonesty.

"Yes." Her voice was steady and her eyes didn't waver.

"Where's the phone?" he asked, his heart pounding excitedly in his chest. He felt his hopes rise dramatically and prayed that this wasn't some sort of sick joke designed by Yori.

"Follow me," she said and turned to glide out the door. He scrambled off the bed and hurried to follow her.

After finally catching up with her, he matched her stride easily. They walked in an awkward silence for what seemed forever before Yori finally whispered, "You were packing?"

Ron didn't answer for a moment, and Yori worried he hadn't heard her. She was about to repeat herself when he finally answered, "Yes. I was going to go apologize to Kim."

"And that required packing your bags?"

"I wanted to do it in person," he explained.

They'd finally arrived at Sensei's quarters. Ron wondered if this had all been a rouse to get him here so Sensei could yell at him freely without disturbing the other students.

"It's in here," Yori said, sliding open the intricately decorated screen door. The breeze from the open door ruffled her glossy hair and the intoxicating aroma of jade and jasmine assaulted Ron's nostrils.

He clamped his mouth closed and shoved his hands in the pockets of his gi.

Expecting Sensei to be standing somewhere within the room, Ron was surprised when he apprehensively walked inside it only to find the room empty.

He looked around for a moment (maybe Sensei was hiding?), noticing the expensive silk draped over everything and the intricate fountain softly trickling water into a shallow pond filled with tiny fish, when he spotted his communicator lying on a dark mahogany coffee table towards the middle of the spacious room.

His breath caught in his throat. Could Kim really be in that tiny screen? Had she finally decided to return his calls after he'd left so many apologetic messages?

He rushed to it excitedly and distantly heard Yori leave, softly sliding the door closed behind her.

He scooped up the tiny blue device and hesitantly looked into it, "Kim?"

"Hey, Ron," she answered, giving him a crooked half smile. Little did she know the huge effect that small smile had on him. His heart flipped over in his chest and the longing he felt for her seemed to be a tangible thing.

"I'm so so so so sorry," Ron apologized profusely, "I know you must hate me because I'm such a jerk and I'd understand if you never wanted to see me again even though I really hope you do because I miss you and I love you and I just want to come see you so I can apologize in person because I remember that one time in the mall when Hope was crying because her boyfriend broke up with her and you said that if you have something important to say you should say it in person..."

"Ron," Kim said.

"and I think apologizing to you _**is**_ very important so I started packing my things so I could come apologize in person because you haven't been answering my calls or responding to my messages and I need you to forgive me because I can't live with you being mad at me..."

"Ron," Kim said again, smiling slightly, but Ron was past noticing.

"so the bottom line is that I need you in my life even if it's just as friends because being friends is better than being nothing even though being boyfriend and girlfriend is better than being friends but I cheated on you so I can understand if you don't want to be boyfriend and girlfriend anymore even though I promise I would never do anything like this to you again I swear..."

"Ron!" Kim exclaimed loudly into the communicator.

Ron finally stopped and took a deep breath, looking at Kim with apprehension in his eyes.

"It's okay," Kim told him calmly, the same small smile never leaving her lips.

"What?" Ron asked, not daring to believe his ears.

"It's okay," Kim repeated, "I forgive you."

"You forgive me?!!" Ron exclaimed, an incredulous smile breaking out onto his face, "But how can it be that easy? You haven't even slapped me or anything! I mean, that's what happens in movies, and usually things can't get better until after the slap so if you want to slap me or something I'm totally fine with that because I can totally take it if it means..."

"Ron!" Kim exclaimed again before he could get started on another long winded apology, "I don't want to slap you! This isn't a movie. This is real life. And I've decided that being angry with you is so overrated."

She waited patiently for a response, but it seemed Ron was too shocked to say anything. He continued to stare at her as if he'd never seen anything like her.

She took a deep breath, "I trust you, Ron."

There was no doubting her sincerity. He could hear it in the slight throb to her voice.......could see it in her deep green eyes as they bored into his.

"Thank you," he replied in a choked voice. He couldn't believe he was tearing up, but her words meant so much to him. The fact that she still trusted him, even after what he'd done to her, was nothing short of a miracle to him. He wasn't even sure if he trusted himself yet.

"Your welcome," she replied with a smile.

"You know what really sucks?" Ron asked randomly.

Kim was too thrown off by his strange change of topic to do anything other than shake her head no.

"In movies, after the big fight where the girl slaps the guy and they're away from each other for a while," Ron explained, "The make-up scene always involves make-up sex.................or at least a uh make-up make-out," Ron clarified hastily when he saw the look Kim gave him, "But we can't even do that! This is one of the least dramatic cheating/make-up scenes in the history of cheating/make-up scenes!"

"Ron," Kim sighed and said slowly, "This. Is. Not. A. Movie. This is real life."

"I know, I know," Ron waved her off, "But all my experience with this stuff comes from movies, not real life."

Kim shrugged, agreeing silently.

"KP, what would you say if I told you that I was leaving this stupid place and coming home early?" Ron asked a bit apprehensively.

"I would ask why you would want to come home early when Sensei made it clear that you're needed there," Kim answered somewhat accusingly, once again thrown off by his quick change of subject.

"To see you," Ron told her honestly, "Look, Kim. You're much more important to me than Yamanouchi. If our relationship is even in the slightest bit of jeopardy as a result of my being here, than I want to leave."

Kim smiled sweetly at him, finally understanding what he meant, "That's sweet, baby. But don't worry. Our relationship isn't in any jeopardy."

Relief flooded through Ron. So did a tingly warmth that seemed to radiate from his heart to the tips of his fingers and toes when she called him baby."

"You should stay there and finish out the month. Otherwise, Sensei won't be happy with you............or me for that matter," Kim advised him, "I'll be right here waiting for you when you get home."

Ron's heart gave a stutter and he desperately wished he could somehow fast forward through time to the moment when they would be reunited.

"In the meantime," and Ron listened closely at the change in Kim's tone as she continued, "Do me a favor and stay away from that slut, Yori. I don't want to go through this again. I won't be so understanding next time."

"There won't be a next time," Ron reassured her fervently, "I promise...............and she really isn't a slut, KP. I _did_ kiss her back."

A sheepish and guilty expression found its way onto Ron's face.

"Ron, don't talk about it please," Kim asked him sternly, "I'm trying my hardest to forget it ever happened. And I _wish _you had told me that she was the one to kiss you right off the bat! This whole time I've been imagining you throwing her onto your bed and, and................and you don't want to know what I've been imagining."

"KP," Ron's voice throbbed, close to tears. He wanted to hug her so much it was a physical pain. He hated himself for what he'd put her through, "I'm so sor..."

She held up a hand.

"Stop. I'm fine," she took a deep breath, "It just........it makes me feel better to know that she was the one to initiate the kiss."

"It shouldn't," he told her shamefully, "Whether she kissed me or I kissed her, it was still a kiss. And I still cheated on you."

"Yes, but how it happened makes all the difference," she explained to him with a forgiving smile, "Let's quit talking about it. You've probably got some ninja duties you need to take care of, and we've been talking for over half an hour. I'll let you go."

"Okay," Ron said. Kim couldn't figure out why he looked so scared until he took a deep breath as if steeling himself for something and then said firmly, "I love you."

Kim smiled. Was he honestly afraid that she wouldn't say it back?

"I love you too," she told him reassuringly. Then she kissed the tiny screen and quickly hit the off button before she did something as stupid as begging him to come home early like she desperately wanted him to.

He beamed, hitting the off button on his on communicator. He slipped it into his pocket, and stood up, stretching. He couldn't seem to quit smiling. She'd said she loved him! And she trusted him!

At that moment, he knew they'd last forever. Because after everything they'd been through, they still trusted and loved each other.


	18. Happy Again

Don't hate me! Assuming there's anyone actually reading this right now, I'd like to say I am so so so so sorry for taking so long to update. I am embarrassed and abashed (*hangs head in shame*). Honestly, I had completely forgotten about this story. When something reminded me of it the other day, I was horrified to realize I had never actually finished it (it was all finished, in my head, you see, so for me there was closure). Anyway, I realized that I could not leave it unfinished. Therefore, I present to you: the next chapter. If you are actually reading this, you are my new favorite person as you are probably the only one who has not given up on this story.

As always, everything but Brad belongs to Disney.

Kim walked into the lunch room beaming rays of happiness at everyone she saw. She and Ron were doing better than ever. All was right with the world. She let her mind wander to the moment after the next week was finished when she would finally, finally be reunited with the best friend she hadn't been away from for this long since she was four, and the boyfriend she missed achingly.

Her attitude was a shocking contrast to the way she had been the past few days. The despondent, mopey, baggy-eyed, sweat pants wearing very unKim-like wreck of a girl was gone. In her place was a radiant, bright-eyed and grinning girl that walked purposely with her tray toward her lunch table. Her eyes dimmed slightly when she saw that Brad was the only one currently at the table. Where were Monique, Brick, Felix, and Tara? Shaking off the awkwardness she felt begin to settle over her, she walked confidently over and sat down beside him.

He looked over, expecting to see a depressed Kim who he knew - based on his observations of the last few days - wouldn't eat a bite on her plate. Instead he saw a Kim that was smiling slightly, looking a little uncomfortable, but definitely not depressed. Shit. Did this mean she and her weasel of a boyfriend had made up?

"Hey," he smiled at her softly and slightly probingly. "You look... happy."

"Yeah," Kim's smile widened slightly before settling back into a shy half-smile. "But we should talk before everyone gets here."

Brad tried to keep his face composed, but no guy wanted to here the 'we should talk' phrase come out of any girl's mouth, especially from one he wanted as much as Brad wanted Kim. "About?" he asked as calmly as he could manage.

"The... the... almost kiss," Kim told him softly, a blush creeping up her neck.

"I didn't -" Brad started to defend himself, but Kim cut him off.

"I know. It's okay. We're okay. It's just..." Kim paused, searching for words to explain the way she felt, "I don't want things to be awkward between us. I mean, I like you. A lot. If it weren't for Ron, maybe we'd even...but... um...there is Ron. And I love him. But I don't want our friendship to have this awkward sexual tension it has. Let's just... how about we get a fresh start and work on rebuilding our friendship up to what it was before the scene in my living room?"

Brad ignored the question, jaw and lips tight and eyes flashing, "Does this mean that you and Ron...?"

"Yes," here Kim's smile came out in full force. "I forgave Ron. We made up last night. I..."

A loud, girly scream cut her off mid-sentence, and Kim and Brad's heads snapped up to find the source of the piercing sound. Monique stood behind them with eyes shining and a huge smile on her face, "It's about god-damned time! I was about to stage an intervention!" She threw her tray on the table and wrapped Kim in a vise-like hug, squealing the whole time. Kim laughed at her best girlfriend's enthusiasm and wrapped her arms around Monique, happy that her friend was happy for her. Of course, Kim had told her all about Ron and Yori when she had calmed down after her crying session, and of course Monique had been outraged and indignant on her behalf. But it had gone far enough, in Monique's opinion. She wasn't used to seeing a mopey Kim and was glad that her friend was back to normal. "Tell me everything!" she demanded as she pulled away and plopped down on the chair beside Kim, scooting closer.

Brick, Felix, and Tara had all sat down during the girly scene and also waited eagerly for the story. With all eyes on her, Kim felt a little on the spot, but proceeded to tell them the Reader's Digest version of her and Ron's conversation. The fact that they all already knew about the Ron/Yori kiss in the first place meant that Monique must have told them everything - or at least told Brick who had told Felix who had told Tara. She wondered if they also knew about Brad's near kiss (Kim had relayed the news to Monique and had been surprised at the force of her anger in response).

"He tried to kiss you?" Monique exclaimed, outraged. "That no good, slimy piece of..."

"Mon!" Kim stopped her, shocked. "He was only trying to make me feel better. I had just found out about Ron, and I think he was just caught up in the moment, you know?"

"No, I don't know!" Monique yelled indignantly. "There is no excuse for him trying to get a piece of that ass just because Ron was ALMOST seduced by some geisha hoe! That chauvinistic pig probably thinks that just because he saved your life, you have to become his new sex slave to repay him."

"MONIQUE!" Kim yelled right back. "That's horrible! He would never! He knows how I feel."

"Girl, you're all kinds of oblivious if you truly believe that."

Kim shook the memory off, finished her story, and took in her friends' smiling faces around her.

"That's so sweet!" Tara gushed. "You guys are the cutest couple!"

"Yeah," Felix agreed. "I'm glad you guys worked things out."

"No kidding!" Brick exclaimed. "Things would've been totally awkward at our little get-togethers if you and Ron were on the outs."

"Now you only have a little less than a week until he comes back, and then things can go back to the way they were," Monique declared, relieved.

Everyone else having had their say, it was now Brad's turn to declare his excitement, but silence greeted them from his area of the table. An awkward silence settled over the group as they turned to look at him.

Brad thought maybe he was going into shock. It was weird how at one moment, your world could seem to finally be falling into line, just the way you want it, when the rug gets pulled out from under you and you find yourself in the worst possible situation you could imagine. Ron had cheated on Kim. That had been his chance to comfort her, build her trust. Sure, he'd had a minor set back with the poorly-timed almost-kiss, but that was just a small bump in a smooth road. But now they were back together? What the hell? The loser had cheated on her! The idea of such a whiny, weak creature cheating on such a strong, beautiful woman sickened him. Of course, when he had her he might stray a bit, but he would always come back to her. And besides, he had looks a Calvin Klein model would envy; he couldn't be expected not to share such a gift.

But how to go about this? Things were not going according to plan. There were so many ways he could play this, but none of them promised a definite vitory. He'd tried the comforting friend approach, but look at where that had gotten him. Maybe it was time to revert to one of his earlier tactics... playing the victim.

He pushed his chair from the table violently and stalked his way forcefully out of the lunch room doors, shoving a poor student aside that happened to be in his way.

The group watched him storm off with varying emotions. Brick and Felix looked at each other skeptically. What angle was he playing this time? the glance seemed to ask. Monique watched him with a mixture of triumph and guilt at feeling that triumph. Tara was wide-eyed with shock.

"I'd... I'd better go see what's wrong," Kim stammered distractedly to the group. The wave of concern that washed over her surprised even her in its intensity. She stood up hesitantly and looked apologetically at her old friends before hustling after her new one.

She found him in an empty classroom, pacing the length of the floor.

"Brad?" Kim called hesitantly from the doorway. She watched as his shoulders stiffened, but he didn't respond or even turn around. "Brad..." Kim sighed softly and closed the door quietly behind her as she walked closer to him.

He hunched over, clutching his stomach as if he were in physical pain. Kim walked over to him, placing a hand on his back. "Brad talk to me. Please."

As anyone who knew her would tell you, Kim was a compassionate person. She felt others' pain as deeply as she felt her own. It was one of the many reasons she felt the desperate need to help people. That's why, even though the awkwardness of the situation in her living room was still weighing on her mind, she still sat and rubbed soothing circles on Brad's back as he spilled his heart to her.

"I just can't believe you would do this," he finally admitted.

Kim decided to let him continue before she let the accusatory sentence anger her.

He looked at her, his eyes swimming with unshed tears. "I just... I haven't opened up to anyone in so long," he continued dejectedly, "Not since what happened with my ex. And then I open up to you, I'm there for you when your boyfriend leaves and then when he cheats on you, I'm supportive, I'm kind, I'm a gentleman, and you still write me off without a second's thought the second he deigns to apologize. I would never do anything to hurt you, Kim. Never. And he hurt you so badly."

Kim sighed, still patting his back soothingly. "He didn't mean to. He would never do anything to intentionally hurt me, Brad. You don't know him like I do."

"I don't have to," Brad said cuttingly. "His actions speak for themselves. I was nothing but nice to him, and he was still horribly mean to me when I first came here. He cheats on you, and I'm there to pick up the pieces. And yet you're still with him. You still choose him over me."

Kim didn't know what to say, didn't know how to explain that she would always choose Ron, over anyone. And that that wasn't Brad's fault. It wasn't anything he'd done or hadn't done. It was just that no one else could ever be Ron. That didn't mean she didn't like him for who he was or that she didn't want to remain friends with him. It just meant that she could never be with him.

Nothing he said was pulling her away from Ron, it was only making her feel incredibly sad for him. "Yes," Kim finally said. "We've got so many years of history together. I know him better than I know myself. And that's why I know without a doubt that he didn't mean to cheat on me. It was only a fluke. A very unfortunate mistake."

Brad huffed as the tears fell faster from his eyes. Kim's heart broke from him. She could only imagine how hard it must be for him to open up to someone after what his girlfriend and best friend had done to him, only to have that person shoot him down too. But it still didn't change her mind. She belonged to Ron.

The bell rang shrilly, causing them both to jump. Kim stood up first, looking down at him, feeling as though she'd only made things worse, not better.

"Can we maybe talk some more after school?" Brad asked with wide, vulnerable brown eyes.

Kim gave him a small smile. "Of course."

Brad nodded. "Meet my by my car after school. There's a place I want to show you."

Kim, acting on pure sympathetic impulse, reached up on her tiptoes and kissed him lightly on the cheek. "Even though I'm taken, I know that you'll make some lucky girl very happy one day. And until then, I'm here for you whenever you want to talk."

With that, she swiftly walked out the door to her next class.

Ron was feeling good. He traipsed around the secret ninja school, a certain swagger in his step, going about his daily business with an excited energy he hadn't exhibited for weeks. Much to the relief of the students and instructors at the school, he'd gone back to smiling broadly at anyone he saw, sometimes waving happily, sometimes shouting out a quick "Konnichiwa amigo!"

He was back to performing extraordinarily in sparring matches, winning more swiftly than ever before. Yori noticed, but was unsure how to feel about the change, happy that he was happy but resentful of the reason for his happiness. Sensei noticed too and graced Yori with an approving smile, knowing that it was her confession of initiating the kiss that had perpetuated the reconciliation of Kim and Ron.

On Ron's part, even though his mood had improved exponentially, he was never completely content. He couldn't be, not without Kim by his side. But still, he'd take far away from Kim while they were together over far away from Kim while they were broken up any day. He could also see the light at the end of the tunnel now. He'd been at the ninja school for over three weeks. If he were to stay a whole month, he had less than a week left, and Sensei had never talked about a specific date for him to return home. Hell, maybe he'd let him leave early.

That day, after defeating Hirotaka in a sparring match, hands down the best ninja at the school (apart from maybe Yori, but he refused to train with her), during one of his daily training sessions, Sensei pulled him aside to talk.

They walked along a beautiful stream for a time, high mountains as their backdrop, in companionable silence. Ron, happy to so effortlessly be back in Sensei's good graces after the way he'd been acting, was content to walk with Sensei all day without talking if that's what he wanted. But finally, Sensei spoke. "You have done so well, Stoppable-san."

Ron looked at him with mild surprise. Sure, he'd been doing well at first, but wasn't Sensei even a little bit angry that Ron was so ruled by his emotions? The second things with him and Kim had gone south, he'd sort of checked out. . . and he knew it.

Sensei chuckled softly at the look on Ron's face, guessing the direction his thoughts had taken. "I understand what happened with you and Possible-san. There is no need to look so apprehensive. Being with her makes you stronger."

Ron nodded, agreeing silently. He'd always known that, had always been fine with it, but he was surprised that Sensei was so cool with it. The wise old man was so strong and calm and infallible, all on his own. Ron couldn't imagine him depending on anyone the way that Ron depended on Kim.

Once again sensing his thoughts, Sensei continued, "There is nothing wrong with drawing strength from another, especially one as pure of heart as Possible-san. You draw strength from one another and that is a good thing, a healthy thing..."

Even though Sensei paused, Ron stayed silent, knowing he had more to say.

"But I'm afraid that soon, very soon, she will need you in a way she has not needed you before."

Ron glanced at Sensei in startled confusion.

"Possible-san has always needed you to keep her calm and sane, to keep her happy and relaxed. She's needed your companionship on missions, your support, and perhaps even your 'dumb skill'," Sensei smiled ruefully before continuing, "but for the most part she has handled the intense fighting and hand-to-hand combat herself. However, as your missions get more difficult and your foes get more cunning and more ruthless she will need you to be there for her in every way."

By now they had stopped walking and were sitting on a stone bench below a cherry blossom tree in full, marvelous bloom. A pink flower floated down and landed on Ron's lap. He picked it up, examining it as he listened to Sensei raptly. The light pink color and soft, supple texture reminded him of Kim's lips. He clutched the flower more tightly, protecting it from the soft breeze that threatened to blow it away.

"That is why I asked you to come here for this month. I wanted to help you hone your skills, to get you thinking in the way of the ninja, so that you can be everything you need to be for your partner. I know it has been hard to be away from her, but it was necessary." Sensei paused as though steeling himself to say something. "Possible-san is in danger. A danger the likes of which the two of you have not yet encountered. For evil is not always large, repugnant death rays or scarred, blue-skinned villains. Evil can be beautiful. Evil can be alluring."

Ron looked up swiftly, still clutching the pink flower. "How immediate is the danger?"

"I'm afraid that, even as we speak, Possible-san is in danger."

Ron stood abruptly, making a move as though he could run to her, but Sensei stopped him with a gentle, wrinkled hand on his arm.

"Remain calm, Stoppable-san," Sensei advised soothingly. "She, as yet, is unaware of the danger. I will know when it is directly upon her. She is fine for now"

"Sensei, how do you know?" Ron asked desperately. As ashamed as he was to admit it, he didn't trust anyone, not even kind and wise Sensei, with Kim's life.

"Just trust that I will know when she is in immediate danger," Sensei said simply. "And you will, too."

"I will?"

Sensei nodded. "You are connected to her in a very unique way. It is a deeper connection perhaps than even you know. Simply put, you will feel when she is in danger. Now please, sit."

Ron sat, acknowledging that Sensei knew what he was talking about. He thought for a moment, and knew that, even though it sounded impossible, Sensei was right. He'd always had what he liked to call his Kim-sense. He knew what she was feeling, when she was angry, when she was upset, when she was excited, and when she was hurt, almost as soon as she did. He'd always chalked it up to them being such close friends, but perhaps it was something more.

"Yes, I can see that you already know what I am referring to. Everyone has a destiny Stoppable-san, and Possible-san is yours. A difference between your destiny and others' is that you and Possible-san will go on to do great things if you follow yours. But perhaps the most important difference is that your destiny is so intricately intertwined with Possible-san's that, if you are without her or she without you, neither of you will do those great things. That is why it is so important that you keep each other safe. That is why it was so imperative that you come here and learn how to protect her. For were you to lose her, I fear that you would not be the same good, kind-hearted man you are today."

Ron sat in silence, unsure of how to respond. He wanted to disagree, to claim that he would be kind and good-natured with or without Kim, but he knew he'd be lying. So he stayed silent, stroking the petals of the flower gently. It was finally hitting him how much was resting on his shoulders. His future, Kim's future, the future of millions of others' whose lives would be affected if Kim and him were no longer around to save them.

"Ron," Sensei said with an earnest light in his eye, startling Ron with the use of his first name, "whatever comes, I believe in you. I believe that you and Possible-san can do anything together."

Ron smiled crookedly, exhaling slowly.

"Anyway," Sensei continued, standing up agilely, "stay on guard and listen to your gut. The moment you feel Possible-san is in immediate danger, let me know, and I will get you to her."

Ron nodded determinedly, standing up with Sensei and surprising them both when he leaned down to give Sensei a tight hug.

"Thank you," he said sincerely as he pulled away.

Sensei nodded, looking touched, as they turned and walked back toward the middle of the school. Ron followed alongside him, thinking about Kim, and paying close attention to the way he was feeling. He couldn't explain it, but he could feel that, for the moment, Kim was okay. He tucked the pink flower he still held carefully into the pocket of his gi, walking calmly alongside the wisest man he knew in the most beautiful place he'd ever been, wishing he were anywhere else in the world if it meant Kim was by his side.


	19. Brad's Betrayal

Kim stopped by her locker after school before going to meet Brad at his car. As she transferred her books from her locker to her bookbag, dreading the amount of homework she had to do that night, the sleek computer Wade installed in her locker blinked on and his smiling face filled the screen.

"Hey, Kim!" he greeted her.

"Hey, Wade," she smiled back at him as she debated whether or not to take home her ten pound math textbook. "What's the sitch?"

"Nothing too exciting," he announced, pausing to take a slurp of his soft drink. "I just have some updates I want to make to the Kimmunicator before you head home. Will you plug it into the computer? It shouldn't take longer than a couple of minutes."

Kim glanced at the clock: 3:05. Oh well, Brad could wait a few minutes. "Sure, Wade," she said, plugging the little blue device into the USB on the computer.

He got to work immediately, typing away rapidly on his keyboard. As Kim zipped up her bag, Felix rolled up to her locker. "Hey Kim. Would you mind if I borrowed Rufus for the evening?" he asked. "I want to work on a few upgrades to my chair, and I could really use his help."

Before she had a chance to answer, Rufus popped out of the pocket in her cargos, scampering up to her shoulder. "Yay!" he squeaked excitedly. She knew it was completely irrational, but she was tempted to tell Felix no. For whatever reason, she was reluctant to let Rufus go. He was her strongest tie to Ron after all, and her boyfriend had entrusted him to her. Still, if anyone would take good care of the little guy, it was Felix.

"Um," she hesitated slightly, "sure, Felix. How soon will you have him back?"

"Later tonight. I can drop him off at your house when we're done. If that's okay?"

"That's fine," Kim smiled somewhat nervously, and Rufus hugged her cheek tightly, patting her hair consolingly.

Felix scooted closer to her, knocking her locker door shut with his shoulder so that Rufus could easily climb down her arm and onto his chair.

Kim tried to squelch the strange sense of loss that accompanied the absence of Rufus in her pocket. He would be fine, she told herself. Still, she grabbed her bookbag and followed Felix toward the door, reminding him, "He'll be hungry. So if you have some cheese or anything at your house, be sure to feed him. If not, you may have to stop at Bueno Nacho to get him something."

She dug around in her pocket and pulled out a few crumpled dollar bills. "Here's some money. His favorite is the naco of course, so get him a couple of those. That should tide him over until he gets back to my house. And if he gets thirsty, give him some water - 62 degrees farenheight. He'll get a chill if it's too cold, and he doesn't like lukewarm. He prefers soda, but it makes him a little gassy so I've been trying to ween him off the stuff. If he gets sleepy put a couple of towels in a drawer and let him take a nap. He likes those really fuzzy towels, not the threadbare kind. And his favorite color is red - I think it reminds him of Ron's pullover - so if you have any red towels, use those. Oh, and if -"

Felix cut her off, laughing. "He'll be fine, Kim. I promise he will be in the utmost comfort while in my care." He stuffed the money back in the pocket of her jeans. "And the least I could do is treat him to some Bueno Nacho if he's going to take time out of his busy day to help me," he continued jokingly.

Kim rubbed the back of her neck, unconsciously mimicking one of her boyfriend's signature habits, much to Felix's amusement. "Okay, yeah," she gulped as they reached the door. She saw Brad leaning nonchalantly against his sleek sports car, sporting dark sunglasses. She bent down to kiss Rufus quickly on the head. "See you tonight, Rufus. Bye Felix. Take good care of him, please," she reminded him earnestly as she started walking toward Brad.

Felix just smiled at her indulgently, wheeling himself over to Tara's car, Rufus on his shoulder.

Kim strolled over to Brad, giving him a quick hug. She expected him to smile at her or comment good-naturedly about her making him wait, but he was still as stone, opening the passenger door for her without saying a word. She got in, somewhat apprehensively.

He walked around the vehicle and slid in next to her, starting the car and backing out without so much as a greeting.

After a few minutes of his chilly silence, she knew she had to do something. She couldn't stand this stony, unspeaking him so she laid a hand on his arm. He softened slightly. "Brad, are you still upset?"

He turned his head toward her, but she couldn't see his eyes behind the dark sunglasses. "A little," was all he said. She scrutinized his face, but without being able to see his eyes, she had no idea what was going on in his head. She wondered if he was angry with her.

She sighed, looking out the window, giving up on conversation for the moment. They sat in silence for a few minutes, nothing but the radio breaking the quiet. She wasn't quite sure where they were headed and didn't ask. They were getting into the more industrial part of town, full of factories and trucks and smog.

A news report came on the radio and she tuned in the moment a familiar name caught her attention. "This just in: the infamous villain commonly known as Shego was admitted into Middleton Hospital today by her partner in crime, Dr. Drakken, after sustaining several life-threatening injuries. It is as yet unknown what caused these injuries, but, needless to say, they must be severe indeed if they were such that her partner turned her into a hospital, knowing that she would be incarcerated after treatment."

Kim gasped in shock, turning to Brad. "That's Shego!" she exclaimed, pointing at the radio as though it were the green-hued villainess herself. "Oh my god, I wonder what happened to her?"

Her hand covered her mouth. Obviously there was no love lost between her and Shego, but she had never had the desire to see Shego dead. . . or nearly so.

She listened raptly as the announcer continued. "When asked, her attending physician commented that she was lucky to be alive and might very well not survive the next few days. Sustaining such injuries as broken ribs, a collapsed lung, a ruptured spleen, severely broken arms and legs, a broken nos-"

The announcer's voice cut off as Brad switched off the radio swiftly. "I was listening to that!" Kim protested, moving to turn it back on. Brad's hand caught her wrist before she could touch the dial.

"Kim, do you think I'll ever have a chance with you?" Brad asked out of nowhere, completely throwing Kim for a loop. She was still fixated on what horrible incident had caused Shego such extensive injuries. "And I mean ever. Is there anything I could ever do to win you over, fair and square?"

Kim tried to reorient her mind, attempting to focus on answering Brad's question. "Well, I don't know," she stammered, running through the question again in her head and finally fully understanding it's meaning. She would just have to ask Wade to give her the low down on Shego later. "I don't think so. Not unless something unimaginable were to break Ron and I apart, and I can't imagine anything strong enough to do that."

"What about death?" he asked, a scary chill to his voice. Kim's neck prickled. She whipped her head toward him, scrutinizing his face, trying to figure out what he meant by such a tactless statement.

"That -" Kim took a deep breath, calming her quickly escalating nerves. "That shouldn't be an issue for a long long long time."

"But would it?"

"It would, um ," she paused, choosing her words carefully, "depend on the circumstances. The death of either one of us would be devastating to the other. If anything were to happen to Ron, I would imagine it would take me years to even begin to feel normal again. And even then, I could never love anyone the way I love Ron."

Brad frowned visibly. "So no. I have no chance, playing by the rules."

Kim steeled herself, knowing her next words would hurt him, but growing apprehensive at the turn their conversation had taken and wanting to be as clear as possible, leaving no room for misunderstanding. "No, I guess not. Not even death would affect what I feel for Ron."

He nodded, his jaw setting into a hard line as they pulled off the street, driving up to a large, cement warehouse. He drove around to the back, parking the car and leaning back in his seat. "I have something I want to show you."

He got out of the car and headed toward the warehouse entrance without pausing to wait for her. She scrambled out of the car, her unease growing with each step she took. But she was being ridiculous. This was Brad! The same guy she'd spent almost every moment with since Ron left. The same guy she'd gone shopping with, watched movies with, talked freely with. The same guy that had held her while she'd cried over Ron.

She quickly caught up to him, once again trying to look into his eyes, but his sunglasses remained an impenetrable barrier. "What's in here?" She tried to betray nothing but innocent curiosity in her voice, but worried that some of her apprehension had slipped out with it.

He held the door open for her, smiling. "If I told you it wouldn't be as exciting."

She walked in carefully ahead of him, her adrenaline pumping, all of her senses on high alert. Her unease was heightening to alarming levels. This whole situation was so weird. She'd expected a park or the top of a building or some place like that. Not a huge, dark warehouse. She could make out some outlines in the darkness, but couldn't see what they were. "Aren't there any lights in here?"

He shut the door behind them, and she was immediately enclosed by a complete, heavy blackness. She tensed automatically, her well-honed instincts taking over. A large arm encircled her waist and a cloth smelling strongly of a chemical that Kim immediately identified as chloroform was pressed over her nose and mouth. She struggled, already feeling the deadening of her limbs as the scent made its way into her sinuses. She bent at the waist, trying to flip him over her, but he just pulled her tighter against him, straightening her body, and pressed the cloth more firmly into her face.

He had her arms pinned tightly to her sides, holding them down with the arm he had encircling her waist, but she managed to wriggle one free and elbowed him, hard, in the gut. He grunted, his grip loosening momentarily. She took advantage, spinning out of his grasp, and blindly leg-sweeping, trying to fling his legs out from under him. She barely nipped him with her foot, but it was enough. She heard him stumble towards her. She tried to back away blindly, but he caught her around the waist as he went down, taking her with him and falling on top of her. Her head smacked sickeningly against the cement of the warehouse floor, exploding her vision into bright, blinking spots. His weight knocked the breath out of her, and for a moment she couldn't breath or see or think. Before she could reorient herself, his weight was pressing down on her and the cloth was pressed over her mouth. She shook her head from side to side, desperately trying to get it off as she felt unconsciousness take hold of her, but it did no good and only worsened the pounding pain in her head.

"Sorry Kim" she heard him whisper in her ear as her vision faded to black. The last thought she had was that she wished he didn't sound so much like Ron; it only made her feel that much sicker.

Ron was stepping into his room, a towel wrapped loosely around his waist, after a particularly relaxing bath when the feeling he'd been waiting for hit him like a spinning top of doom. A perverse sense of wrongness came over him, nearly bringing him to his knees with its intensity. Kim was in trouble.

He immediately rushed out the door, barely taking the time to throw on his gi, tearing through the dormitory hallways desperately. He ran across the school quad, hardly able to see in the darkness of the night, running faster than he ever had before. He flew across the pavement with a nearly inhuman swiftness, rushing toward Sensei's office.

Rounding the corner outside his teacher's building, he ran smack into something fairly soft. He fell flat on his back with a grunt of pain and heard a distinctly feminine cry as whoever he'd run into fell down next to him. He jumped up as quickly as possible, ready to run again, worried about the well-being of the person he'd run into, but not enough to stop and check on them.

Just as he took his first running step toward Sensei's dojo, a feminine figure blocked his path. He couldn't make out details in the darkness, but he knew instinctively who it was.

He made a move to step around her, but she mirrored him, blocking his way once again. He switched directions, and still she followed him, mimicking his moves exactly. A disorienting sense of deja vu hit him, confusing him. Obviously he'd never been in this situation before. With it came a growing sense of desperate panic; all he knew was that it was absolutely imperative that he get around the ninja. He was about to punch her in the face to get her out of his way when she spoke. "Stoppable-san! I need your help."

"Move, Yori!" he cried in anger and disbelief.

She ignored him, calmly demanding, "You must come with me."

He was blinded by panic. He didn't have time to argue with her! Her legs were spread wide, her arms tensed and ready. For whatever reason, he sensed that she would not let him pass no matter what he said.

So he took matters into his own hands. Moving so quickly he was nothing but a blur in the darkness, he tucked into himself, rolling between her legs. He popped up on the other side of her,and was sprinting before he'd completely gotten his feet underneath him. Within the span of half a second he was running for Sensei's door.

He couldn't tell if she was running after him, and didn't pause to look back. The sound of the beat of his own heart was all he could hear, drowning out all other noise until he felt like he was in some sort of silent, motionless dream where he was the only one with the ability to break the eerie stillness.

He flung open the ornately carved wooden door leading to Sensei's rooms without knocking, past the point of worrying about ancient Japanese customs. So focused was he on getting to Sensei's room he nearly ran smack into the man himself.

"Sensei!" Ron gasped in relief. "I just felt -"

Sensei cut him off with a raise of his wrinkled hand. "I know why you are here, Stoppable-san. I feel it too. Come." With no more explanation he whipped around, heading down a hallway flanked by paper screen doors.

Ron followed close behind, resisting the urge to scoop Sensei up and run with him to wherever they were going. The old man was fast for his age, but the pace was still driving Ron crazy.

At the end of the hallway, they came upon a huge steel door, glaringly out of place among the delicate paper-thin screen walls. Ron, unable to hold his tongue any longer, started blurting out questions. "How am I going to get there? Some sort of mystical monkey-port? Will it zap me to wherever she is or do I have to find her? How fast will it be?"

Even in the face of Ron's tension, Sensei chuckled good-naturedly as he swiftly pulled a key from the pocket of his robes and opened the door. "Don't be silly, Stoppable-san. You will take a jet of course."

"A jet?" Ron asked, mildly disappointed. He'd been expecting some sort of insta-transportation. Would a jet get him to her in time?

"A jet," Sensei affirmed. As they walked into a huge hanger, it's main focal point a sleek-looking black plane, he continued. "The fastest jet in known existence. A team of Yamonouchi alumni designed and built it. It should get you to Middleton in only a few hours."

Ron nodded, setting his chin determinedly. "Thank you, Sensei. For everything."

"It has been my honor, Stoppable-san."

Wasting no more time, Ron hauled himself into the body of the tiny jet, giving a small nod to the already ready-to-go pilot as he began to strap himself in.

As the jet door started to close, Ron heard Sensei yell, "Remember, Ron. I believe in you."

The jet's engines fired up and a gaping hole opened in the ceiling above them. Ron looked out the tiny window on the side of the jet at Sensei, giving him a quick peace and love salute. As Sensei returned it, Yori came bursting through the steel door, locking eyes with Ron and staring in horror as the jet flew out of the hole and into the night sky.

Ron, not bothering to waste time wondering about Yori, whipped out his communicator, punching in the button that would connect him to Wade.

Wade's youthful face blinked to life on the screen. "Ron?" he asked curiously when he saw the blonde-haired man staring at him in wild-eyed panic.

"Yes, me. Look, Wade, no time to talk. Do you know where Kim is?"

Wade immediately started typing away on his keyboard, just going with it, asking no questions. For all of his naiveté and optimism, he was still a world class hacker and had been a part of Team Possible long enough to know when it was time to get down to business.

"Well, as you know, there's a tracker in the Kimmunicator," he mumbled rapidly, still concentrating on the screen in front of him, "but Kim left it in her locker today."

"What?" Ron looked at him like he'd just announced that Mr. Barkin was Ron's biological mother. "Kim would never leave her Kimmunicator. She takes it with her everywhere."

"I know, but she got distracted today." At Ron's confused look, he explained further. "I asked her to plug it in so I could download some upgrades and, while she was waiting, Felix came up asking to borrow Rufus for the evening."

Ron's face paled visibly. "So we're talking no Kimmunicator. And no Rufus."

Wade nodded, looking a little pale himself. "And I can't get a read on her. I took out both of your tracking chips months ago because you said it was unethical."

Ron nodded with narrowed eyes, concentrating hard, trying to come up with a place to start, a direction to take. "You said you last saw her talking to Felix?"

"Yes."

"Patch me through to him."

With the stroke of his fingers across the keyboard, Wade's face disappeared from Ron's screen and Felix's number replaced it. It rang and rang, and each ring felt like an eternity to Ron.

Finally Felix answered. "Hello?"

"Felix!" Ron sighed, relieved he'd picked up. "Have you seen Kim?"

"Not since this afternoon. Why?" The curious skepticism in his voice was hard to miss.

"Because she's in trouble," was all Ron gave for an explanation. Felix accepted it, immediately giving the details he knew Ron would ask him for.

"After school I went up to her locker and asked to borrow Rufus. She eventually consented, and we walked outside together. Then I went left and she went right, toward her car I'm assuming, and that's all I know."

"Did she get into her car?" Ron asked.

Felix paused for a moment. "She was heading that way, but I can't be sure. I never actually saw her get in."

Ron sighed. "Is Rufus with you?"

"Yeah," Felix said, somewhat offended at Ron's impatient tone.

"Put him on."

Felix complied. Ron didn't mean to be rude, but he knew Rufus would have noticed more than Felix had. He was as valuable a part of the team as he and Kim were, and was always intensely aware of details. He would have payed attention to where Kim was going.

Ron quickly heard the squeaks of his best buddy on the other end of the line and would have smiled if the situation had been different. As it was, he got right down to business. "Rufus, buddy, did you see where Kim went after school? Did she get in her car?"

Rufus was squeaking rapidly and Ron had to pay close attention to understand. It was a lot easier when he could see Rufus's gestures as he communicated.

"He's shaking his head no," Felix announced in an attempt to be helpful.

"Okay, thanks. Rufus, did you see where she went?"

He distinctly heard an affirmative squeak. "Where?" he asked urgently.

Rufus went into a series of chattering so rapid even Ron couldn't understand it all. But when he heard a particular word come out of the little guy's mouth, he froze instantly. He distinctly made out the word "Brad" in the series of squeaks.

"She's with Brad?" he asked for clarification, his heart sinking into his boots.

"He's shaking his head yes," Felix declared.

"Thanks. Gotta go." With that he signed off, probably offending them both, but he was past the point of caring about niceties.

"Wade, did you get that?" he asked.

"Yeah and it seems likely. She has been spending a lot of time with him lately," Wade admitted, careful of Ron's reaction.

His face didn't change in the slightest. It remained a hard, determined mask tasked with a mission of the utmost importance. "I need you to call up the feed to the security cameras outside the school. First, look for the moment when Kim leaves with him, and which direction they take. Then, we need to look to be sure her car is still in the parking lot."

Wade complied and within seconds had the footage of Kim and Brad on Ron's little screen. Ron watched as they briefly hugged, trying not to feel jealous or bitter, and then payed close attention to which direction they headed after Brad helped Kim get in and then start up the car. They went right. Not toward the residential areas of town, but the industrial part.

"And her car is still in the lot," Wide piped in helpfully.

It wasn't much, but it was a start at least, and all Ron needed was somewhere to begin. He would do whatever it took to find Kim, even if it meant tearing the industrial section of town apart building by building.


	20. Fighting Back

Here's the next chapter finally. We're coming close to the end! Leave me a review!

She'd come to his house to surprise him. They missed each other so much. She couldn't remember why. Hadn't they just seen each other at school earlier that day? Had she even been to school? She couldn't remember and didn't really care. She just wanted to see him so badly.

Her excitement built as she walked through his house, as familiar to her as her own, climbing the stairs swiftly. She couldn't contain the smile that split her face, widening the closer she got to his bedroom. Finally, finally, they would be reunited. She would get to touch him again, feel the relief of his skin beneath her fingertips.

She stood outside his door, her heart so full she could barely breathe. She wouldn't be able to until she felt his arms around her again. He was just on the other side of the doorway. He was so close.

She paused with her hand on the doorknob. The strange noises coming from inside his room finally registered in her brain, cutting through the growing elation. The longer she listened, the more the happiness slowly drained from her. Dreading what the noises could mean but unable to take the suspense any longer, she threw open the door to his bedroom.

The sight that greeted her sent her stomach rolling, making her so nauseous she thought for sure she would throw up on his bedroom carpet. Her loving, loyal, goofy boyfriend was on top of a beautiful, voluptuous, exotic woman that Kim immediately recognized as Yori. She'd seen Ron naked before, knew and loved every hard line of his body, but she'd never seen the asian beauty without a gi, and if Kim had thought she exuded sex appeal with her clothes on, without them she looked like sex personified. But it was the sight of their naked bodies twined together that cracked her heart. The intense explosion of pleasure that consumed his expression split it in two. And the adoring way he was staring at her, the passionately loving kisses he was placing across her body shattered it into pieces.

Tears involuntarily sprang to her eyes. She couldn't even muster up any anger. All there was was a deep, cutting sense of grief as the person she trusted most gave everything he had to offer, everything he hadn't given her, to another woman.

She had no control over the strangled cry that choked its way up her throat.

The second he heard her voice, Ron's head snapped up. Their eyes connected, his shock meeting her hurt accusation. "Kim!" he yelled. "It's not what you think!"

He pulled away from Yori, and Kim got a full view of her enticing curves. She felt like a twelve-year old boy in comparison. Yori smiled at her, her face smug and satisfied.

She choked in indignation. "I can't believe this is happening," she breathed, barely more than a whisper, backing up as Ron took a step toward her.

"Kim, I love you," he declared, his eyes pleading. He reached out to touch her.

She jerked away. "Don't you dare!" she cried, tears pooling in her green eyes. "You were supposed to wait for me. We were supposed to share this together!"

She couldn't take anymore. She'd seen more than enough. Anxious to flee, to get as far away from him as possible, she turned on her heel and ran smack into a broad chest. Startled, she looked up, and Brad's handsome face gazed down at her. He opened his arms to her, but she backed away, beyond confused.

"Brad? What are you doing here?"

"I'm here for you Kim," he answered, following her retreating footsteps, arms held wide.

She shook the fuzziness out of her head and ducked underneath his arm, desperate to get out of the room, to get to the safety of her own house. But someone else blocked her path to the door.

Monkey Fist. He leered at her and she gasped, backing away again, straight back into Brad. What in the hell was going on?

"Just let me leave!" she yelled, the group surrounded her, coming closer and closer. Her vision was skewed, things and people going blurry at the edges. She stumbled away from the figures closing in on her, toward the bed. It hit the back of her knees and she fell on it, sinking deep into the mattress. Realizing how vulnerable she was in this position, she quickly sat up and moved to get off the bed, but she couldn't. The more she struggled, the deeper the mattress pulled her in. She couldn't move, could barely see.

A heavy weight was on top of her before she could get her bearings. She couldn't tell who it was - Ron, Brad, Monkey Fist. Whoever it was, she desperately wanted them off. Panic clouded her mind and she pushed against the chest smothering hers. Was it Brad's muscular chest, Ron's wiry one, or Monkey Fist's hairy one? She couldn't tell. She didn't know what was happening. Everything was a dizzying blur.

She didn't want this. She wanted out. Her clothes were being pulled off her body but she couldn't tell who's hands were doing it. She couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't scream for help or fight back. She knew sixteen styles of kung fu! This shouldn't be happening to her, couldn't be happening to her. This was not what it was going to be like for her.

She wanted to wait. She wanted her first time to be special, with someone she loved and trusted, not this disorienting fever of unwelcome hands on her body. Not this mad rush of frenzying heat and violent lust that was not her own.

"No!" she almost managed to cry out in a strangled groan, but a hot mouth covered hers before the word could leave her lips, smothering her, sucking the air from her lungs. Hands were in her hair, imprisoning her face, dominating areas of her body she wanted to keep hidden and private. She was naked and vulnerable and lost and violated. She shut her eyes against the aggressive onslaught of her defilement. This couldn't be happening, this couldn't be happening, this couldn't be happening...

With a start, she opened her eyes to a dark cement room, full of machines and boxes and what looked like weapons. She blinked, disoriented, trying to shake off her nausea. It had only been a dream. Only a horrible, sickening, disgusting nightmare. Even the horror of her present situation, as the full reality of what had happened hit her, paled in comparison.

She breathed a surprising sigh of relief. As horrifying as it had been, the nightmare had put things into perspective for her. She could take being chained to a cement wall. She could take the throbbing pain in the back of her skull. And as much as it stung, she could even take Brad's unexpected betrayal.

What she couldn't take was Ron giving something so precious, something they were meant to share with each other, to anyone but her. And she couldn't take someone forcibly taking that special something away from her either. She couldn't take the feeling of lonely helplessness the dream had instilled in her.

She took a deep breath. She would be fine. She would find a way out of this sitch, no problem.

Her first thought was her kimmunicator, but she quickly realized that was a bust when she remembered that she'd left it in her locker. Stupid! She wasn't usually so careless. Which led to her second let down: no Rufus.

She didn't let herself feel disappointed. Instead, she searched the room, taking in all of her surroundings, noting the plethora of weapons lining the walls, stacked in piles, scattering the floor. She spotted what she thought were some high-tech death rays lying next to crude, medieval looking knives and rusted bludgeons beside lasers. Which reminded her.

She rolled her shoulders, trying to spread some feeling into her raised arms, chained above her head. She used her hand to reach into her hair, parting the folds to find the lipstick laser she kept there. She was careful to avoid the sorely tender spot where her head had smacked against the concrete and finally came upon the laser. Her fingers closed around it, but before she took it out, she took a last look around, searching for Brad. Nowhere to be found.

Waisting no time, she sliced through the metal chains at her wrists, catching them before they could hit the ground and make a sound. She swiftly set to work on her ankles, freeing them in no time, and took a moment to spread some feeling to her deaden limbs.

She crept around a few of the boxes, careful not to make a sound, eyes everywhere, searching for a way out. She peeked around some sort of machine, looking for the door she'd come in so trustingly.

"Impressive," a dreadfully familiar voice called from behind her. She turned around slowly to find some sort of laser pointed at her chest. "I couldn't find any weapons or communication devices on you, but I knew you'd have something tricky up your sleeve. You didn't disappoint."

Brad smiled at her proudly, and she scoffed, her cocky mission aura settling upon her familiarly. "You did," she shot out, some of the hurt she felt at his betrayal creeping into her voice.

He frowned, lowering the laser slightly. "Aw, c'mon Kim. Give me a break. It didn't have to be this way. I didn't want to hurt you. Unfortunately, you sort of forced my hand. I'm sorry about your head, by the way."

She snorted. "You don't seem sorry." She inclined her head toward the laser he had pointed at her chest.

He sighed. "Look all of this can end before it even begins if you'll just . . . be with me." He shrugged, unable to come up with a better choice of words, but the desire in his eyes was unmistakable.

"All of this for a date?" she asked incredulously, flipping her hair over her shoulder.

He gave a dark, humorless chuckle. "Oh, I want more than a date from you."

Kim's face twisted in disgust. "Look, I don't understand you. Like half of the girls in the school are in love with you. If you want a piece of ass, why not go for one of them? It would have taken a lot less effort."

"It's not just about fucking you, although that's definitely part of it," he admitted with a nonchalant shrug. Kim glared daggers at him. "I want you to take over the world with me."

Kim rolled her eyes, hands on hips. "I should have guessed. This is a crazed villain thing, not a psychotic horny teenager thing."

"I am not one of your colorful, flashy, theatrical villains! What you don't seem to get yet is that I am so much more clever. Because I've studied you and I've studied your foes, and I know that you defeat them every time. So I'm not going to fight you. I'm going to bring you over to my side, and we're going to take over the world together. We'll be the hottest, most powerful couple on Earth."

Kim remained impassive and unimpressed by his declaration. "Only one problem with your little plan."

Brad raised his eyebrows.

"I will never turn evil, and I will never ever ever be with you."

Brad growled. "Why not?"

"Because I belong to Ron!"

"You belong to me! I've done everything to be what you want. I practically am Ron! Do you know how hard it is to act like that whiny loser?"

"Don't call him that," Kim growled, her hands curling into fists. "You're nothing like Ron."

"I've made myself exactly like Ron . . . for you. I dyed my hair blonde. I've acted goofy and klutzy. I've been passive and supportive and weak. All for you."

"Ron would never hurt me the way you have," she accused.

"Ugh!" Brad huffed. "For the last time, I didn't want to hurt you! I want to protect you! I'll never let anything hurt you again if you just cooperate. I love you. Join me."

"Hah!" Kim laughed derisively. "You don't know what love is! This," she spit out, gesturing to him, his laser still level with her chest, "is not love. This is not protection."

"It is! I'll do anything for you. I already have," he was growing more passionate with each sentence. "Who do you think kicked Shego's ass for you?"

Kim gasped in shock, covering her mouth. "You're the one who beat up Shego?"

Brad beamed smugly. "I did. No one hurts my girl and gets away with it."

Kim took a deep breath, steeling herself for what she was about to do, what she had to do. "I'm not your girl!" she growled as she rushed him.

Ron's foot jiggled impatiently. He'd done everything he could for the moment. Felix, Monique, and Rufus had gone back to the school so that Rufus could try to sniff out which direction Kim had gone and attempt to narrow down her possible location. Wade was searching security cameras on the road Brad had turned on, looking for a flash of his sports car, also trying to find her possible location. At a call from Ron, Brick and the rest of the football team were scouring the industrial area, searching warehouses and factories for Brad's car. There was nothing more he could do.

So why did he feel so useless? Each minute felt like an hour. What was worse, the perverse sense of wrongness was only getting worse the closer he got to Middleton. His skin was prickling and he couldn't get comfortable and his stomach hurt.

Finally, unable to resist, he asked the pilot, "How much longer till we're there?"

The pilot turned to him and said, somewhat sympathetically, "Only half an hour or so."

Ron nodded in thanks, turning to his communicator, trying to think of anyone else he could call. He thought about calling Kim's parents, but didn't want to worry them. If he'd thought they could help, he would have, but he knew they would just be in the way, worry themselves, and likely feel as useless as he did. Her brothers might be useful in finding her and he considered calling them, but if they got involved, her parents would likely find out.

He threw himself back against the seat, trying to meditate, trying to clear his mind. He couldn't stop imagining the horrible things that could be happening to his girlfriend, the pain she could be experiencing. The thought of Brad touching her, of so much as laying a finger on her . . . he couldn't even think about it, it made him so angry, repulsed him so much. The only bright spot in the sea of blackness was that he knew she was alive. He could still feel her. Even if the feeling he felt was horrible and sickening, at least it was there. And as long as she was alive there was hope.


	21. Fate or Dumb Luck

Kim dove low, catching Brad off guard as she slid across the cement toward his legs. The laser fired, going off over her head, nearly singing her hair. She put her weight on her forearms and kicked her legs up, mid-slide, knocking the laser from Brad's hand. He howled in pain, clutching his likely broken hand, giving Kim an opening to scissor his legs out from under him.

He crumpled, nearly falling on top of her. She rolled out from underneath him before he hit the ground, but didn't completely get out of the way in time. He landed painfully on the bottom half of her leg, twisting her ankle at an impossible angle. He didn't move, gasping as he tried to get his wind back, and she wrenched her foot out from under him, grunting in pain as it twisted further in the wrong direction.

She took a second to look down at it and didn't see any bone. Hopefully, it was only sprained, not broken or she'd have a more difficult time than expected getting out of here. She hobbled to her feet as Brad lunged for her injured leg, fingers scraping her ankle. She gritted her teeth and danced out of the way. Once she was a relatively safe distance away, she took a moment to test out her ankle, gingerly putting her weight on it. It hurt like hell, sending shooting pains up her leg, and it felt weak, like her bones had turned to nothing more than smoke and fire. But she was no stranger to pain. Logically, she knew her ankle could hold her up if she ignored it.

By now Brad had struggled to his feet and he faced off against her, hands curled into claws at his side. She straightened up, bracing herself. She had to wait for him to attack first. There was no way she could pull off a sprint with her injury.

She didn't have to wait long. He rushed at her, aiming low for her midsection. Reacting purely on instinct, she pivoted out of the way on her good foot, dodging his attempted tackle. She slammed her elbow between his shoulder blades as he whooshed by her, sending him crashing to the cement once again. His chin cracked against the floor and, for a moment, he was too dazed to move.

Kim climbed atop his back before he could recover himself. Not in the mood for mercy or frivolous gloating, she grabbed a fistful of his hair and, without saying a word, lifted his head up before driving it into the hard ground. He didn't move and his head lolled to the side. She climbed off of him, ignoring the slow trickle of blood that pooled around his ear.

She limped around the perimeter of the huge warehouse, searching for a door or a window, each step more painful than the last. After a good five minutes of desperate searching, she finally came across the door she had entered through. With a sigh of relief she tugged on the metal handle, eager for sunlight and freedom and painkillers. The door didn't budge. She tugged harder. Nothing.

Kim growled in frustration. It was locked from the inside? What kind of warehouse was this? She obviously needed a key. Brad probably had it on him. Grumbling obscenities, she hobbled back to where she'd left his unconscious body.

Rounding the corner of a precariously placed stack of boxes, she expected to see his prone body splayed awkwardly on the floor where she'd left it. It wasn't. He was gone, a small pool of blood the only proof that he had ever been there.

"Shit," she cursed. Before she could form another thought, a crushing weight slammed her into the cement wall from behind. Pain exploded through her cheekbone as a rough hand ground her face into the gritty concrete.

"Do you really think I'm that easy to defeat?" Brad growled into her ear. "I'm Brad Noose! And I cannot be beaten. Not even by you."

He was breathing more and more heavily, working himself into a frenzy. "Now if you would just co-op-er-ate," he yelled, slamming her face into the wall to punctuate each syllable, "I could quit hurting you!'

Latching his fingers into a fistful of her hair, he threw her to the ground. Her head sliced sickeningly into the steel corner of one of the many machines towering over them. Somewhat surprisingly, she didn't feel much pain, just a strange pressure and a dizzying wetness. She tried to scramble to her feet, but her vision was fuzzy and her sense of balance was skewed. All she managed to accomplish was stumbling to her knees. She shook her head hard, trying to clear away the fog.

"Oh, shit," she heard from somewhere above her. The voice sounded like it came from under water. What was happening? She felt fingers probe her head, and the pain finally hit her, slicing through her scalp like a million needle pricks. She cried out. "I'm sorry, babe," she heard the voice say. "But you really need to stop fighting back."

A momentary pause, then a stronger pressure on her head as a hand held a piece of fabric against it. "I don't think it's anything too serious," the voice said. "Probably just a concussion. Are you okay?" A kiss to her forehead. She jerked her head back and forced herself to focus. She saw blonde hair and brown eyes. Ron?

"I really am sorry," the voice said again, chocked up with some sort of emotion, although Kim was too disoriented to identify it. "I don't want to hurt you. Quit making me hurt you."

A kiss to her lips. Definitely not Ron. She knew what his lips felt like, and this was not it. And with that thought, reality came rushing back to her. Brad. It was Brad kissing her, Brad with his shirt off as he pressed the garment against her head. Her blood was staining it as red as her hair. And then somehow her shirt was off too, and their chests were pressed together. When had that happened? Everything was a blur and she couldn't . . . quite . . . focus. Couldn't find the strength to stop whatever was happening, even though she knew it was bad.

Was she dreaming? Was this another horrible rape nightmare? No, it couldn't be. The pain burning throughout her body told her that much. And now her pants were off, and she was bare and cold under the bright fluorescent lights of the warehouse with nothing to cover her but her underwear and blood. Brad was hovering over her, as naked as she was, and even though he was strong and beautiful, the sight of his body and the feel of his skin against hers repulsed her. She couldn't believe this was happening. She couldn't let this happen.

Pulling strength from some deep, primal place inside of her, she brought her hand up and raked her fingernails across Brad's cheek, causing him to loose his grip on her bra strap as he brought his hand up to cup the wound. He grunted in pain as blood poured through his fingers and dripped to the floor, melding with hers.

"Get off me," she growled out, bucking and twisting beneath him.

"Why would you do that?" he screeched as she tried to scramble away. He growled and grabbed her bad ankle, yanking her back toward him. Tears sprang to her eyes at the pain, but she gritted her teeth, refusing to cry out. "Quit being such a tease! I know you want me as much as I want you."

"Keep dreaming," she spit, struggling to sound strong and confident. She watched as Brad's face grew steely, his jaw locking in anger. He put more pressure on her ankle, tightening his hand and squeezing until she heard the sickening crunch of her bone snapping. She screamed through her clenched teeth, praying for a way out of this situation.

"Fine, fine," she heard Brad growl through the haze of pain, a new determination in his voice, and a little of something else. Resignation? "If you're going to be this way, you leave me no choice."

He scooped her up roughly, jostling her head sickeningly, and carried her over to the manacles chained to the cement wall. None to gently, he strapped her into them. A cold sense of dread creeped its way up her spine when she looked at his face. There was an emptiness to it, a dark, deep coldness. He reached down and picked up a crude looking weapon, some sort of old, serrated knife.

"You know," he said, still looking at the rusted metal in his hands, "most of your baddies feel the need to use all that frivolous high-tech equipment on you. Don't get me wrong, ray guns and lasers and heat seeking missiles can have their uses, but that's all unnecessary if you've got the guts to use something a bit more medieval."

He traced the knife lightly against her stomach, teasing her. He smiled and his teeth gleamed as menacingly as the sharp metal in his hands in the glow of the fluorescent lights. "Kiss me," he ordered, tilting his face closer to hers. She narrowed her eyes and set her jaw defiantly.

"Fuck you," she spit vehemently.

He grinned, pulling back slightly as one of his hands ran itself down her side and clenched around her hip and the other pressed the knife closer to her belly. "Oh, you will," he promised. And he brought the knife down, slashing across her abdomen.

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Ron was fairly certain he was losing his mind. Every minute that passed with him sitting on his ass while Kim was in danger was pure, agonizing torture. He pressed his face to the glass of the window on the airplane, knowing they were mere moments away from the airport, where they could land and he could begin his search for real. Squinting in disbelief, he realized they were flying over the industrial section of town, and he was looking right down at a row of huge, barren warehouses. His heart stopped.

Call it destiny, call it fate, a coincidence, or even dumb luck if you will, but sometimes things fall into place. Sometimes, in the midst of everything going wrong that can possibly go wrong, through chaos and panic and worry, something goes miraculously right. And parked behind one of those warehouses, in a spot not visible from the street below, was a shiny red sports car. A car that Ron recognized immediately.

"Stop!" he bellowed at the pilot. The poor guy jumped about a foot into the air, banking the plane sideways before regaining control. "I'm sorry?" he asked, turning to face Ron.

"You've got to let me off this plane!" Ron demanded, jumping to his feet and gathering his gadgets into his backpack in a whirlwind of activity.

"But, Sir . . ." the flabbergasted pilot objected, "I have nowhere to land!"

"I don't care! They're right below us!"

The pilot had to admit the young man was pretty frightening with the steely glint that came into his eyes. He wasn't sure if he should attempt to calm him down like his training suggested or just back off and let him do what he wanted. "Do you have jumping gear?"

"Y-yes," the pilot stammered, pointing toward a backpacked parachute on a hook hanging on the wall, "but you can't . . ."

"Watch me," Ron growled, already slipping the pack over his own and striding to the hatch. He pushed down on the handle, grunting as he forced the door open. Then, before the pilot could utter a word in protest, Ron Stoppable flung himself out of the fastest jet his secret ninja school had to offer.

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"Kiss me," Brad demanded for what must've been the thirtieth time. All Kim wanted to do was break down and sob. Or better yet, fade into unconsciousness. Her ankle was throbbing horribly, her hips and waist and breasts were bruising where Brad kept squeezing them, and the shallow cuts and slices all along her body were burning and stinging so painfully that Kim had to physically fight to keep tears from falling. Instead she tilted her head up and glared at Brad, trying to convey all the disgust and betrayal and anger she felt towards him through the burning gaze. "Never," she snarled.

He yelled and hurled his latest torture instrument against the wall in his fury. Kim waited in agonizing hopelessness for the pain that was sure to follow, inflicted by some new brutal instrument of torture. Her body clenched in fearful anticipation. She forced her head to stay up, so that she showed no fear. She wondered what possible part of her body he could slice or bruise that he hadn't already. Every inch of her had been hurt in some way, the only exception being her face. No matter how many times he demanded that she kiss him or how many times he shouted in anger after she refused, he'd never so much as touched her face. She was no psychologist, but there was some psychotic shit going on in his head. It was like he refused to touch her face because he wanted her to give that up to him without him having to initiate the contact. He'd been touching and stroking and grabbing at places that even Ron had never explored, owning her body as though it were his. But he hadn't kissed her, hadn't so much as brushed her cheek.

It was painful and degrading and humiliating and devastating in the worst way.

"You're gonna make me kill him, aren't you?" Brad asked her, shaking his head in resignation. "You're gonna make me kill him. It's the only way you'll ever let yourself be mine."

Kim froze in shock as she realized who he was talking about.

"Yori's going to be furious," he muttered, pacing back and forth in front of her prone form, talking more to himself than to her. "But I can deal with her when the time comes. It's the only choice I have left apart from killing you, and I'm not ready to do that just yet."

Kim's eyes widened in horror. "Yori?" she asked, her voice coming out hoarse and raspy. "What do you mean, Yori?"

He paused in his rambling to focus on her. "Surely you remember Yori?" he asked, and his eyes brightened in smug triumph as he smirked. "The one Mr. Perfect had some fun with?"

Kim gaped as her stomach clenched in reflexive disgust. Nothing made any sense.

"She was supposed to get him and I was supposed to get you," he explained. "That was the deal. I would help her in pulling you away from him, and she would help me in pulling him away from you. She's not gonna be happy when I kill him, but it's necessary. It's the only way. And hopefully by the time she retaliates, I'll have you on my side, and she'll be no match for the both of us."

"You've been working with Yori this whole time?"

"Unfortunately," Brad said, his lip curling up with condescension. "What a waist of a human being. All that talent, that beauty, all of her connections and her only goal is to shack up with the loser." He sighed before settling his eyes again on her. "But not me, baby. I have much higher standards. Once I acquire my partner" - he leaned in close to her face, his breath rolling across her ear - "that's you by the way" - he leaned away again, trailing a finger along her neck as he went - "once you join me, you and I are going to take over this sorry excuse of a world."

Kim had no idea what sort of expression was on her face because she had no idea what exactly she was feeling, but it must have been something to see because Brad's eyes softened and he leaned in again. "Don't be jealous," he whispered as his hands once again started roaming. One crept into the waistband of her underwear, and she choked as he stroked her. And when his fingers entered her, she bucked and screamed and twisted and fought, but he only pushed them deeper. Lust glazing his eyes, he licked his lips and whispered huskily, "You're worth a thousand Yoris."

"That's the first thing that's ever come out of your mouth that's not complete bullshit," a voice growled, and before Kim could blink an eye, Brad was ripped away from her and thrown straight into a twisting tower of metal. It collapsed on top of him, burying him under shiny, sharp rubble.

Kim didn't see it though. She was too busy staring in disbelief at her boyfriend. He looked absolutely furious in a glorious sort of way. Never had he looked so frighteningly fierce. She couldn't believe this was the same guy who had no problem snarfing down a naco in five seconds flat. The fluorescent lights backlit his blonde hair into a shining halo of gold, and in her haze of pain, she wondered if perhaps she was dead and her own personal angel had come to lead her into a peaceful death. Or perhaps all angels had the face of Ron?

And then he got a good look at her and choked out "KP" in an agonized strangle of a voice, and his face softened into a mask of desperate concern, and she knew that she wasn't looking at some angel with Ron's face. It was actually, really, truly her Ron who was striding toward her and snapping her manacles apart like they were no more than wooden pencils. Tingles ran through her limp arm as it fell to her side, finally released. He cradled her against his body as the last piece of metal fell from her wrist and she sagged against him. "Oh, KP," he was saying over and over again. "I'm so so sorry. I can't believe I let this happen. I'm so sorry I left." He was kissing her hair, her cheek, her forehead, her temple as he crushed her against him as gently as possible.

And that's when the tears she'd been holding back for what felt like eons finally came in full force. She wrapped her aching arms around him and buried her face into her spot in the hollow between his chest and neck, completely breaking down at the same time that she reveled in the incredible sense of relief being held by him brought her. And through it, he held her tightly to him, one arm wrapped securely around her back and the other stroking her hair soothingly while he whispered assurances in her ear. "Everything's going to be fine, KP. You're safe now. Wade's already contacted the police. That fucker will never touch you again."

And then they heard the deafening sound of clanging steel as Brad heaved himself out of the pile of metal that had buried him. Kim watched in mild fascination as Ron's demeanor changed dramatically. His eyes narrowed and hardened. His jaw clenched. His arms tensed around her. His hands curled into fists. Scary-calm, he helped Kim to the floor, propping her up against the wall. The cuts on her back scratched painfully against the cement, but she was too exhausted and woozy to move, even to alleviate the pain. He kissed her forehead, hard, and stood up, turning to face Brad.

"Thanks for showing up." Brad sneered around his swelling jaw as Ron faced off against him. "Now I get the added perk of killing you in front of her."

Ron didn't move, didn't blink an eye as Brad advanced slowly toward him, continuing his rant. "That'll take the fight right of her. You've really made my job much easi -"

THWAK! Brad's head spun to the side, spit and blood flying from his mouth and spattering the floor as Ron lowered his leg. He stumbled to the side, catching himself on his fingers. But Ron didn't give him a chance to right himself. He moved inhumanely fast, his arms and fists seeming to glow as he slammed them against Brad's body, almost too quickly to see. He elbowed Brad in the nose, savoring the agonized yowl that tore itself from the doppleganger's throat, and followed it up with a swift kick to his knee, shattering it into fragments. Brad fell to the floor, hard. Blearily, he looked up as Ron stooped over him, pain etched in every line of his face. "Nobody touches my girl," was all Ron said, rearing his fist back to land a killing blow to Brad's pretty face, ready to pound that perfect nose right into his brain. But then the fear left Brad's eyes, turning to incredulousness, and then, inexplicably, to glee. Glancing over Ron's shoulder, he started to laugh.

Ron heard a soft thump behind him as someone dropped from the same window he'd managed to sneak in through. Grabbing Brad into a chokehold, he whipped his head around.

"Yori?" he exclaimed, refusing to believe his eyes as the ninja pulled some sort of gun from a pocket strapped to her thigh.

"Hello, Ron-San," she greeted him, as though they had just crossed paths on one of the Yamanouchi walkways. He couldn't take his eyes off of the weapon she had trained on his chest. Noticing his preoccupation, she shrugged. "Not my preferred weapon, I know, but necessary in this condition."

He could feel the betrayal pouring through him, the accusation burning through his eyes and into hers. She gasped, offended, at the look he shot her. "It's only a stun gun, Ron-San. I have no desire to hurt you. Only to keep you with me." She swallowed. "Now get off of him."

"You were a part of this the whole time?" Ron asked, the words like bullets as they shot from his mouth. "You were helping him?"

She nodded, saying nothing but tightening her hold on the gun. Ron stood slowly, removing his hands from around Brad's neck. The moment he could breathe, Brad started laughing again, the sound grating on Ron's ears like nails on a chalkboard. He glanced down at the bleeding man, but Brad was staring at Kim, a possessive glint in his eye, as she slumped to the floor, fading in and out of consciousness.

Ron turned to stare at Kim and felt his panic rising, desperation and an overwhelming desire to scoop her up and run her to the nearest hospital raging through him.

"Don't look at her!" Yori screeched at Ron, her calm demeanor breaking. "Look at me!"

Ron reluctantly tore his eyes away from his unconscious girlfriend and glared at the ninja. Her jaw clenched and she pulled another weapon from her belt, a lethal-looking throwing star, keeping the stun gun trained carefully on Ron. "I won't kill you, but I have no qualms about killing her!" Ron froze as Yori raised her arm, the metal of the throwing star glinting menacingly in the fluorescent lights.

"No!" Ron cried, and the agonized sound tore through the warehouse like a hurricane, bouncing off the walls and amplifying his pain. A millisecond after the word left his mouth, the door to the warehouse burst in, sending chunks of concrete and rubble raining down on them all. Ron immediately sprang to action, using the distraction to run the short distance to Kim. He shielded her body from what rubble he could as Global Justice agents poured into the warehouse, guns up and ready. Yori immediately started running for the window, hurling the throwing star at an agent and shooting the stun gun over her shoulder as she sprinted, leaving Brad screaming curses after her on the floor.

Before Ron could so much as blink, Yori went down hard, convulsing on the floor after being shot with some sort of electrifying taser gun. Instantly, half of the GJ agents swarmed her while the other half went to apprehend Brad, who was throwing a tantrum worthy of a screaming toddler.

But Ron couldn't take the time to relish in the sight.

"We need medical assistance, now!" Ron screamed into the warehouse as he knelt over Kim, stroking her forehead and gently swiping her hair from her face. He was so full of emotions, he wasn't even sure what they were. Desperate panic, boiling anger, overwhelming concern, and an aching tenderness all raged through him as he held Kim's hand while a team of medic's lifted her onto a stretcher. It was cold and limp and soaked in blood, like the rest of her body. Everywhere he looked, she was mutilated in some way. From the shallow, razor-induced cuts that left hanging pieces of delicate skin and would not stop bleeding, to the deeper slices caused by rusted, heavy metal blades to the black bruises that covered her ribs and breasts and thighs, she was full of injuries that Ron could barely look at.

He felt like a completely incompetent loser. His girl, the one person that he cared about most in the world and the one person he was responsible for, was bleeding out in the back of an ambulance after being fucked with both mentally and physically by a slimy piece of shit. And what was more was that the girl he'd been with instead, the one he had been training with and had trusted, had been in on it the whole time. He was so stupid. And his idiocy and incompetence had hurt the girl he loved.

He climbed into the back of the ambulance and sat next to his best friend, cupping her hand between his and bowing his head over them as he finally allowed the hardness that had encased him since he'd felt Kim's distress fall away into pieces, and allowed a few tears to escape.


	22. Recovery

The hospital was in a frenzy.

Of course, the second Kim had been rushed in, her mom had been notified, something Ron had not thought about in all of the rush and anxiety. So now the whole family was there, bursting with questions and worry while the doctors evaluated Kim's condition. And they weren't the only ones. After Wade had filled them all in, the whole search party had come to the hospital.

Rufus was playing Zombie Mayhem on Felix's gameboy on the arm of his wheelchair after he'd greeted Ron with a chittering apology that only Ron could understand and a bunch of naked mole rat tears. Ron had comforted the little guy for a moment before passing him off to Felix so he could have some space to think and worry. Felix had patted him once on the arm before wheeling over to the window, with a still teary-eyed Rufus in tow.

Monique was holding tightly to Brick's hand while Brick kept glancing guiltily over at Ron. When he'd first come in, he'd clomped over to Ron with the whole football team following behind him to tell Ron how sorry he was, that he should have payed better attention, that he should have kicked Brad's ass some day after school before he had the chance to kidnap Kim. Ron had done his best to comfort him, telling him it wasn't his fault, that he'd done his best, and that nobody blamed him for anything that had happened. But there was only so much he could do to comfort others when his own nerves were frayed to breaking point. Monique had come soon after, gasping out apologizes to Ron between her hysterical wailing and collapsed against him, sobbing, until Brick finally came over and pulled her off of him and led her into a waiting chair.

By the time Wade beeped him on the communicator to tell Ron how sorry he was and fret over whether or not he was needed at the hospital, Ron was ready to go ninja crazy on everybody in his vicinity. Instead, he warily told Wade that it wasn't his fault, that he didn't need to leave his room to come to the hospital, that it was better if he stayed where he was in case he was needed.

And then Kim's parents had walked in.

The first thing Mrs. Dr. P did when she saw Ron was envelop him in a tight hug. He hugged her back, hard, and let the motherly love momentarily soothe his nerves. She was the first person to walk in the door who had comforted him instead of expecting him to comfort her, and he let himself relish in the feeling.

"We're so happy you're back," she whispered in his ear while he tried not to cry into her shoulder. "Kimmy hasn't been the same without you. And neither have we." She kissed his cheek and pulled away, wiping his cheeks with her sleeve when her lips came back wet.

"What happened, son?" Mr. Dr. P asked over her shoulder, pacing the length of the waiting room in agitated strides. Ron had known this questions was coming, had dreaded it, but he still didn't know how to answer. He wasn't even one hundred percent sure himself of what all had gone down in that warehouse.

He sighed, glancing toward the closed door that Kim was behind. "Brad ended up being an undercover villain posing as a high school student in order to get Kim to join him in his take over the world ambitions."

Mr. Dr. P blinked. Mrs. Dr. P stared. Ron couldn't stop looking at that closed door, the only thing separating him from Kim after a month apart.

Then Mrs. Dr. P inhaled sharply, "I had no idea. He seemed like such a nice boy." She covered her mouth with her hand. "I should have realized."

For the first time since she'd heard about Kim's injuries, Mrs. Dr. P looked like she might cry. Mr. Dr. P instantly stopped pacing and strode over to his wife, putting his arms around her. "You couldn't have known. None of us did."

Ron fell heavily into a chair and buried his head in his hands. Even though he know Mr. Dr. P didn't mean what he'd said in any sort of accusatory way, he couldn't help but hear the underlying connotations. You couldn't have known. None of us did. Not even Ron, who was with Kim almost every hour of every day and knew Brad was bad news and still left her with him.

As much as he tried not to think about it, he couldn't help but wonder, agonize over really, how far Brad had gone in his abuse of Kim. As much as it had hurt to see her in physical pain, the thought of her being psychologically damaged was so unbearable it made Ron sick. He'd heard the testimonials of women who'd been raped, knew that it was something that gave them nightmares and irrational fears and that they never really recovered from the trauma. He didn't want his girlfriend to be one of those girls, didn't want to see his KP skittish or depressed or self-conscious. He wanted her to be happy and secure and vibrant and confident just as she'd always been.

But the likelihood of her being psychologically okay after this was looking bleaker and bleaker. After all, he'd found her tied up in her underwear. And when he'd stormed in he'd seen Brad with his hands on her. But what exactly had he done to her? How far had he gone in his abuse?

Before Ron could worry further, the doctor walked out of Kim's room, closing the door behind him. Ron shot up from his chair, and everyone turned to stare at the doctor in fearful anticipation. He cleared his throat nervously, and turned to Mrs. Dr. P, addressing her. "Your daughter is going to be fine" - the whole room let out its breath in relief - "However, she has some head trauma - a mild concussion. She also has extensive bruising and excessive lacerations. Some are deep enough cuts that they're going to require stitches. But apart from a few possible scars, there should be no lasting physical trauma."

Mrs. Dr. P let out her held breath and Mr. Dr. P put his arm around her shoulders. The doctor tucked his clipboard under his arms and continued, "She's awake now, and you're welcome to go in and see her."

Mr. and Mrs. Dr P nodded and Ron followed them to the door. The doctor held his arm out, catching him across the chest. "Family only," he said firmly.

Ron could barely process the words. "But . . ."

"No buts, young man," the doctor continued, shaking his head.

Mrs. Dr. P, noticing the hold up, came over and gently pushed the doctor's arm down. "He's as good as family, Ivan," she told him. "He can come in."

The doctor gave her a half exasperated, half pleading look. "Ann," he addressed her under his breath, "you know that's against policy. I can't let him do that."

"Ivan . . ." her voice was calm and reassuring, but the doctor was having none of it.

"I'm sorry."

She glanced at Ron before turning back to the doctor, her jaw set and a familiar determination in her eyes. It made Ron's chest ache, she looked so much like Kim. "How about we go in there first, and then he comes in after we're done?" she asked the doctor. "That way, family still sees her first."

The doctor sighed, looking at Ron calculatingly. "Fine," he grumbled, then raised his voice, addressing the rest of the watching room. "But no one else goes in. Not unless your family."

Mr. and Mrs. Dr. P nodded and went in, patting Ron on the shoulder as they passed him. He glanced into the room longingly as the door opened, catching a glimpse of a sterile room with a white-sheeted bed, but it shut behind them before could see Kim. He began pacing in front of the door, feeling everyone's eyes on him, some full of guilt, others with sympathy, all with sorrow.

Finally, finally, after about five minutes, the door opened, and Mr. and Mrs. Dr. P walked out, teary-eyed but smiling. "You can go on in, Ronald," Mr. Dr. P said, holding the door open for him.

Ron wasted no time, striding swiftly into the room and over to Kim's bed as the door clicked shut behind him.

"KP," Ron choked, swallowing convulsively over the nickname as soon as he saw her. Her face looked as perfect as ever, skin smooth and blemish free, but her arms and her chest were covered in bandages. The second she saw him her face lit up and collapsed in the same moment. He didn't even realize it was possible, but she managed to look heartbreakingly sad and glowingly happy at the same time. But then, he supposed, anything was possible for a possible. He rushed to her and then paused over her, wanting to hug her but afraid to touch her bandaged body. But then she held her arms out to him, her eyes conveying to him how much she needed him, and he practically fell against her, he scooped her up so quickly. He cradled her against him, his arms enveloping the upper half of her body, one hand threading through her hair and the other wrapped around her side.

All thoughts of being strong for Kim, of remaining steady and supportive and dry-eyed and immovable, flew out the window as he finally, finally, finally held his girlfriend safely in his arms. It was such a relief to have her here, with him, where he could watch her and protect her and touch her and hold her. She felt smaller and more fragile than she'd ever felt before, but he knew she wasn't. She was the strongest person he knew. He started crying, burying his face into her soft hair, inhaling her, feeling her for the first time in too long. She wrapped her bandaged arms around his neck and ran her fingers through his hair, kissing his neck, his shoulder, his ear, his hair, anywhere she could reach as she whispered reassurances to him. "I'm fine, Ronnie, I'm okay. We're together now. Everything's going to be fine."

He couldn't believe he was the one crying on her shoulder when she was the one who had been tortured and violated. But he couldn't deny that he was already feeling better, just being near her and smelling her hair and hearing her voice console him soothingly. He'd known he'd missed her terribly, but he hadn't quite appreciated how much until now, when he was with her again, when the ache of being without her was finally soothed.

"I'm so sorry, KP," he finally calmed down enough to speak. He pulled away slightly, just so he could see her face, but he didn't remove his arms from around her, unwilling to let go of her now that he could finally touch her. "I never should have left. I never should have left you alone with him."

She gave him a stern look, and he could tell she was holding back tears herself. But she was stronger than him, just as she'd always been, in that she didn't let them fall. "Don't you dare blame yourself for this Ron."

But Ron was already shaking his head. "I wasn't there for you when you needed me, KP. I let that asshole hur-"

Kim removed an arm from around his neck and covered his mouth, cutting him off. "I mean it, Ron. Stop it. You were there for me. I don't know how you did it, but you showed up right when I needed you most. You saved me." She removed her hand from his mouth and used it to wipe the tears from his cheek, using her mouth to kiss away the tears from the other one. She pulled back again, giving him a funny look. "How did you do it? How did you know where I was? And how did you get to me from Japan so fast?"

He smiled a watery smile, but a smile nonetheless. "Dumb skill," he said, rubbing circles onto her back. "And I had a little help. I'll explain it all later." And then he couldn't help himself, no matter how delicate she seemed at the moment. He cupped a large hand around her neck, his fingers cutting paths through her hair, his thumb tracing her ear, and leaned down. He kissed her for the first time in a month and it was full of everything he'd been missing. Her mouth responded to his like it was made for it, and she moaned and melted against him. He smiled against her lips, still amazed that he could affect her this way, even after how long they'd been together, even though she was the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen and could have anyone she wanted. The kiss was long and tender and achingly sweet, lingering on their lips even after they finally pulled apart.

That's when Ron noticed that Kim was crying.

"Oh, KP," he said, leaning in to press his lips against her forehead, "What's the matter, baby?"

Kim usually hated pet names, but coming from Ron, it was tender and heartfelt and somehow managed to soothe her enough to take a deep breath and shake her head. "It's nothing," she said, burying her face in his shirt and clasping her arms behind his back. "I just missed you so much," she mumbled, keeping her face hidden.

He sighed and rested his cheek on top of her head, enfolding her more tightly in his arms until she was completely encased in him. If she closed her eyes, she could almost pretend that they were the same person, that her body had melded with his. "You know I know you better than that. That's not why you're crying," he prodded.

She paused, and he waited patiently, giving her time to tell him what she wanted when she was comfortable. "I just . . ." she started, and paused again, still speaking into his chest, "I just feel so safe and . . . and . . . at home with you. It's relieving, after everything that happened."

He waited, and when she didn't continue, he asked, "What exactly did happen, KP?"

She groaned, seeming to steel herself, almost as though she were drawing strength from his body. "I suppose we'd better get GJ in here before I get into that."

"Alright," Ron consented, "If you're sure you're ready."

He felt the up-and-down motion of her head as she nodded against his chest. He thought about getting up to go get somebody, but the thought of leaving Kim was too much for him so he reached around her and hit the call button beside the bed instead.

A moment later, Mrs. Dr. P poked her head in, her eyes softening at the sight of her daughter being cradled by her boyfriend on the bed.

"Hey, Mrs. Dr. P," Ron said, turning his head so that his other cheek rested atop Kim's hair so he could look at the door. "Kim's ready to tell everyone what happened."

Mrs. Dr. P nodded and made to close the door, but Ron continued, "And by everyone, I mean GJ recorders and any doctors that are privy to this sort of information. The less people, the better." He gave Mrs. Dr. P a meaningful look, not wanting to overwhelm Kim, and she nodded in understanding before going to gather the necessary people.

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"And then Ron showed up, and I sort of blacked out," Kim finished. "I thought I was either dreaming or dying."

Ron tightened his arm around her shoulders. He was sitting next to her on the narrow bed and hadn't taken his arm from around her the whole half hour she'd been telling her story. Come to think of it, he hand't left her side (or stopped touching her) since he'd been allowed into her hospital room. He vaguely wondered if the crowd in the waiting room was still there or if they'd gotten tired and left.

The GJ recorders finished typing on their laptops and closed them, and the doctor nodded his head at Kim. Mrs. Dr. P patted her hand where it rested on the bed.

She'd told them all about Brad, about his pretending to be her friend, about him kidnapping and then ambushing her, about his villainous take-over-the-world schemes and how he'd tried to get her to join him, and when she refused, how he'd tortured her by cutting and slicing and pinching and punching. When asked why she'd been found in her underwear by one of the GJ recorders, a careful, probatory look in his eye, she'd responded that it had given Brad better access to abuse her stomach and arms and legs. He'd nodded, still looking a little skeptical, and typed a note on his keyboard.

Ron had gotten more and more tense as the story went on. Everyone else in the room assumed it was because hearing the story was painful, and while that was certainly true and definitely had Ron feeling more than a little tense, there was more to his discomfiture. He didn't know how or why he knew, but he knew, that Kim was leaving things out. And he thought he had a pretty good idea of what those things were.

Everyone began filing out, the doctor opening his mouth to kick Ron out with them, but Mrs. Dr. P gave him a look and he shut it with a resigned sigh. She came over, kissed them both on crowns of their heads, said "I love you" to each, and followed everyone out, shutting the door quietly behind her, leaving Ron and Kim alone.

Ron pulled away slightly, turning to face Kim on the bed so he could see her face.

"KP, I know that's not the whole story," he told her, trying to sound as open and supportive and understanding as possible, not wanting to pry but not willing to let her bottle up what she was feeling either. He didn't want her to be hurting inside without letting him help her. "I understand why you wouldn't want to tell GJ every detail, but won't you tell me?"

She looked up at the ceiling, blinking rapidly. "I don't want you to be mad," she finally admitted, her voice breaking. His heart broke with it, and a rush of protectiveness tore through his chest. He reached for her hands, massaging them between his.

"I can't promise not to be mad, but I can tell you that there's no way on Earth I'll be mad at you," he vowed, a sliver of dread snaking into his stomach, worried about what she would say next.

She looked down at their clasped hands rather than into his eyes. He waited patiently for her to speak.

And waited.

And waited.

Until finally, not being able to take the silence anymore, he just came out with it and asked, "Did he rape you?"

Kim exhaled and closed her eyes. A tear trickled from beneath her closed eyelid. "I don't know," she whispered.

"What do you mean you don't kn-?" Ron began, his voice low and soft.

"I don't know if it counts," she shrugged, finally opening her eyes. "He touched me."

Kim was a fascinating person, and not an easy one to figure out. Thankfully, Ron had known her practically his whole life and understood her in a way no one else did. He knew that sometimes, Kim just needed a good listener, someone to sit there while she poured her heart out or ranted or whatever she needed to do. But other times, and these times were few and far between, when Kim was uncomfortable or self conscious, she needed a little prodding. Ron, being Ron, intuitively knew that this was one of those times.

So he remained calm and asked gently, "Where?"

"Everywhere," she choked. "It was humiliating, Ron, and degrading and completely horrible, the way he touched me."

"Oh, KP," he crooned, near tears himself. "I'm so sorry. . . Did he - ?"

"His boxers never came off," she interrupted, knowing where his line of questioning was going. Ron felt a swell of something (possessiveness?, jealousy?) knife through him at the fact that she knew the type of underwear he'd had on. "I never even saw his . . . you know," she shrugged.

"So what happened, baby?" She didn't respond, so he continued, reassuring her. "You know I'm here, no matter what."

She nodded. "He used his fingers and, well," she paused, looking uncomfortable, and took in a shaky breath, "he fingered me, I guess is what you'd call it." She shrugged, trying to play it off like it didn't really bother her, but she couldn't hold the faux nonchalance for long. Within moments she burst into full blown sobbing. Ron scooted closer so he could pull her into his arms.

"I - I know it wasn't anything major," she gasped out between sobs, so that Ron had to strain to understand her. "I know girls get raped all the time and I wasn't even really raped. And other girls don't have the support systems I do or the fighting ability I have. I have no right to be cryi-"

"Stop it, KP," Ron demanded, still hugging her to him. "You have every right to do whatever the hell you want to do. You were raped, Kim, I don't care what the exact definition is. You were forced to do sexual things that you were unwilling to do. So you can cry as long and as hard as you want, especially with me."

So she did. She cried herself out in that stark white hospital room, Ron's shirt soaking up her tears like he was soaking the pain out of her. And any time either one of them tried to apologize, Kim for not being strong enough or smart enough to stop what had happened and Ron for leaving and thereby allowing it to happen, the other shut them down quickly and soothed their guilt. And when she was finally out of tears, she did feel better. Loads better actually. Because no matter what happened to her, no matter how bad things got or how completely crappy she felt about herself, Ron loved her more than she had any right to be loved. And she loved him the same way. They'd always have each other.

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Hey guys! This is technically the end, although I'm planning on doing one more epilogue chapter, further exploring the repercussions of their ordeal. Thanks so much for reading and enjoying and reviewing my story. You guys are awesome!


	23. Epilogue

Hey guys! I know this is a long time coming, but here's the epilogue, finally. I'm thinking maybe I'll continue Kim and Ron's story into their college experience, but no promises! I just write when inspiration strikes. Once again, thanks for sticking with me, and I hope you enjoy!

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"Congratulations!"

The unified shout echoed throughout the restaurant as Kim, Ron, Monique, Brick, and Felix strolled through the door into the marbled walkway. Decorations were strung around intricately carved, wooden columns and hung like banners across archways. The whole restaurant, the nicest in town, had been rented out for the party, not an easy feat. They had Ron's up-and-coming internship at the restaurant to thank for it. As it was, all around them, the four former high school students were surrounded by graduation decorations.

They were also surrounded by shouts of "I can't believe you're graduating", "we're so proud of you", and "congratulations". As soon as they reached the bulk of the crowd, Felix, Monique, and Brick dispersed, scattering to their respective families, but not Kim and Ron. The stayed together, joining the blob of people as one and allowing their families to wrap them in loving embraces without letting go of each other.

Ron's arm was secured around Kim's waist, his hand encompassing her tiny hip. He was just beginning to get over his hesitancy in touching her in any but the gentlest of ways, no longer afraid to put some pressure there. And he did now, pulling her closer anytime their families' ministrations threatened to pull them apart. Kim still didn't do too well in crowds. Not that there had been any incidents in a while, but Ron wasn't taking any chances. He still remembered her awful break-down about a month after the scene at the warehouse as though it were permanently seared into his brain . . .

_"KP, go long!" Ron yelled as he reached his arm back and threw the football in a spiraling arc into Kim's outstretched arms. She immediately sprinted into their make-shift end-zone, whooping in victory as she scored a touchdown and threw the ball down onto the grass at her feet._

_"Woooo!" Ron exclaimed, running over to her and scooping her up in a hug. "Sweet victory!"_

_She laughed, hugging him back, hard. At that point, he'd still been hesitant of hurting her and his hugs were always soft and gentle. Needless to say, soft and gentle didn't always cut it with Kim and she'd often had to squeeze him back hard to let him know that she was okay - still as durable and strong as ever._

_While she'd been making a miraculous and speedy recovery, she wasn't completely healed yet and probably shouldn't have been playing football at all. But no matter how much Ron begged her to take it easy, she insisted on taking Brick and Monique up on their previous raincheck for a friendly football game, explaining to him that testing out her injuries and risking hurting herself further was worth it if it meant she was able to get out and do something. Nothing was worse than all the sitting on her ass she'd been doing, recovering from her injuries._

_So he'd finally relented with the stipulation that everyone take it easy on her, no tackles allowed. He'd mostly been looking at Monique while saying this, knowing that she could play dirty if it meant winning._

_Everyone had agreed of course and now they were in Brick's back yard, playing what was perhaps the least violent game of tag football anyone had ever seen. Monique and Kim still played nearly as fiercely as they would otherwise, but Ron and Brick were both cautious and extremely careful of every move they made, both terrified of hurting Kim._

_"Okay, that's three to two, us," Ron said to Kim. "Does this mean we can call it a day?"_

_"Ron! We just started!" Kim protested._

_"Yeah, best three out of five," Monique backed her up, not cool with losing so quickly._

_Ron looked to Brick for help, but the big guy just shrugged, unwilling to fight their two determined women. Ron rolled his eyes and consented. "Fine, but then we're done. This is just asking for trouble."_

_Kim and Monique smiled triumphantly at each other before resuming their positions, Ron and Brick moving to follow._

_"Hut, hut, hike!"_

_Ron, playing quarterback for him and Kim's team, reared back his arm again, seeking out Kim and launching the ball to her. She caught it and started running for the end-zone once again. Brick shot after her, reaching his arm out to tag her, almost close enough to touch her._

_Looking back, it really had been an honest mistake, an unfortunate accident. But when Brick's foot caught in a hole in the grass and he stumbled, tripping into Kim and falling hard, taking her down with him until his massive weight was pinning her to the ground,and Kim's terror-filled scream ripped through the air and Ron's chest like a sharp piece of metal, Ron's blood ran white hot and he honestly thought he might have gone crazy for a moment._

_He sprinted over to them, ripping a dazed Brick off of his girlfriend and throwing him to the ground. Brick scrambled up, unconcerned about any of his own possible injuries, worry filling his face as he reached out to Kim, chanting "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry" over and over again. The second his hand made contact with her shoulder, Kim choked and wrenched herself away, shaking like a feather in violent wind. She closed her eyes and placed her trembling hands over them, curling in on herself like a crumpled piece of paper._

_To Ron, she seemed no more substantive than a feather or paper as she shook. She looked delicate and fragile and broken and it destroyed Ron to see the strongest women he knew be so scared._

_Although he just wanted to pick her up, cradle and soothe her, Ron bent down to her with caution, instinctively knowing that she wasn't herself, that she was in another time, in another place. Monique and Brick hovered over her and he gave them a look until they backed away a few steps._

_"KP, it's me," Ron told her softly, focusing his sole attention on her until the other two people in the yard faded away to nothing. "It's Ron. You're safe, baby. You know I would never let anything hurt you."_

_He crouched closer, until he was mere inches from touching her. He scrutinized her body carefully, scouring her for any new injuries. His whole body ached with having her so near and hurt and frightened and not being able to hold her. "I'm here. You're here. We're safe. We're always safe together. Now let me help you. Please," his voice broke with strain on the last word such was his intense desire to comfort her. Her pain was his, and not being able to hold her only amplified that pain until he could scarcely breathe with it._

_He cautiously and oh so gently reached out his hand to touch her shoulder. She didn't flinch away and her shaking seemed to subside somewhat. He grew bolder, moving closer and reaching out until he sat cross-legged on the grass with her cradled in his lap. He curled himself around her, pressing his cheek to hers and rocking her with his body. He whispered assurances and comforting endearments into her ear until her shaking stopped completely and she was left gasping in erratic heaves in his arms._

_"KP, breathe with me," he instructed her gently, aligning her chest with his and slowing his breathing to huge inhales and slow exhales. "Calm down, baby. You can do it. Follow my breaths."_

_He concentrated on keeping his breathing even and slow until her chest rose and fell with his in unison. She seemed to calm and come back to herself and she sat in Ron's arms for long moments before attempting to speak._

_"I'm so sorry," she eventually said, still shaken and attempting to stand on wobbly legs. Ron came up with her and held her up, spooning himself into her back and taking her weight._

_"Don't you dare apologize," Ron scolded her, lacing his fingers through hers and placing them on her stomach as he crossed his arms around her, propping her up so securely that she could have gone completely limp and still would have stayed standing._

_"But I am," she protested. "I don't know what happened. I can't believe I'm so weak."_

_"No, Kim" Brick interrupted before Ron could, his brows creased with guilt. "It's my fault. I'm so sorry. I was careless. Are you hurt?"_

_She shook her head, eyes downcast, and her eyes welled against her will, threatening to spill tears. "I'm sorry," she whispered. Ron moved around her until he was standing directly in front of her. He framed her face with both hands, threading his fingers through her hair at both temples, stooping so he could look her straight in the eyes._

_"This is NOT your fault. I won't let you blame yourself for having a completely normal reaction to something awful that happened to you." She met his eyes and his bored into hers with tenderness and sincerity. "You always have been and always will be the strongest person I know. And anytime you're feeling weak or you need a break, I'll be strong enough for the both of us." He paused to let his words sink in, intensity and determination radiating from him. "I promise, KP. We'll get through this. I never want you to feel like you have to hide anything you're feeling from me. Let yourself feel what you want to feel. And let me be there for you. Okay?"_

_She searched his eyes, finding nothing but completely unconditional love and support and nodded her head yes. "Okay."_

He shook the memory off, quelling the ache it brought to his chest. That had been months ago and he hadn't spoken to Brick for weeks after, not even apologizing for the black eye he'd given him when he'd thrown him to the ground. He was no stranger to accidents and clumsiness and honest mistakes and would have easily forgiven any offenses made toward him, but he simply couldn't forgive and forget where Kim's pain was concerned.

For her part, Kim had had a quick recovery physically, with little to no setbacks. Psychologically, however, there'd been a few more problems. One, obviously, had been the flashback in Brick's yard. Another was the nightmares she faced less and less frequently as time went on.

At first, she'd had them nearly every night. The first time she'd woken up sweating and trembling, she'd immediately dialed Ron's number, simply told him "I need you", and he'd rushed over within minutes. One look at her face and he'd known she was having a rough night.

"Want to talk about it?" he'd asked as he slid into her bed and wrapped his arms around her. She'd shaken her head, burrowing into him, and merely said, "You didn't make it in time." His face had filled with pain, immediately knowing what she meant, and he'd pulled her tightly into his body, stroking her hair gently away from her forehead and resting his lips there.

"Don't think about it, KP," he'd whispered to her in the dark. "I did make it, and I'd move heaven and earth again and again to keep you safe."

She'd nodded, soothed and warm and secure, and they'd fallen asleep wrapped around each other.

Of course, their parents had been furious the next morning. After explaining what had happened, Mr. and Mrs. Drs. P had quickly calmed down, even thanking Ron for being so supportive and sweet to their daughter. However, to everyone's surprise it was Ron's parents that had the biggest problem with it. They forbid him to leave the house in the middle of the night ever again and exclaimed over the inappropriateness of allowing two teenagers to sleep together, regardless of extenuating circumstances. Ron had sat stoically through their lecture; when it was done, he'd merely said, "I'm sorry that's how you feel, but I'll always be there for Kim when she needs me."

And true to his word, every night after, when Kim called him frightened with nightmares, he'd rushed to her and cuddled her and reassured her until she finally slept, nightmare-free. Eventually, his parents gave up on forbidding him to do this, accepting that he would go to her no matter how often they grounded him or what measures they took to keep him in the house at night. And eventually her nightmares had subsided to once or twice a week.

But even the nightmares, horrible and painful as they had been for both him and Kim, hadn't been the worst part. No, that award went to the way some students had reacted to her return to school.

A few had stuck to her like gum, constantly exclaiming and simpering over how extremely awful her ordeal must have been, pretending to sympathize with her while actually attempting to garner a small bit of the attention she now constantly and unwillingly received. Others had stayed far away from her, crossing to the other side of the hallway whenever she came near, as though her awful experience could somehow rub off on them.

But the worst were the ones who had blamed her. They were mostly girls - the types of girls that giggle and moon after men and seem to be the sole focus of feminists' efforts to knock some sense into their gender. They were also the ones who had lusted after Brad simply because he was a handsome guy, refusing to see anything other than his extremely good-looks and smooth charm. The only explanation that Ron or Kim could come up with was that they'd been jealous of Kim and the attention she had received from Brad. Regardless of what caused it, they'd took whatever bitter feelings they'd had and channeled them into making Kim's life hell, constantly asserting that Brad's assault was her fault - that she'd led him on, that she'd wanted it, and her protests were just her underhanded way of making it seem as though she didn't want it so she could cheat on Ron without facing any blame. They claimed that she'd gotten what she'd deserved for being such a tease and a cheater.

These were the ones that pissed Ron off so much that his vision seemed to cloud red with anger, not because Kim gave any credence to their accusations, but because he saw how much it hurt her to have people think so little of her. One of her flaws was that she cared far too much what people thought of her, and Ron knew the idiotic students' opinions hurt her feelings. She had been tortured and violated and was being blamed for it, was even being accused of wanting it. The heartless fucking idiots.

He did what he could to heed them off, snatching hateful notes out of Kim's locker before she noticed them and shooting down anyone who so much as looked at her in a way he didn't like. At one point, he completely went off on a softball player who had claimed she'd heard that Kim had been the one to come on to Brad, that when he'd refused her advances she'd gone crazy and attacked, forcing him to defend himself against her and her sixteen styles of kung fu. He caused a huge scene in the hallway, yelling as loud as he'd ever yelled, truly believing he might actually hit a girl, the biggest and most dramatic scene that Middleton High had ever seen, until Kim herself had had to leave her class to come and calm him down.

She'd taken him into an empty room, cupped his head between her hands, and pulled him down to kiss him, hard. When she finally pulled back to look into his eyes, brown irises no longer emitting angry sparks but instead muted to a soft warm glow, she said, "I know what you're doing and I love you for it, but you can't shield me from everything."

He'd opened his mouth to protest, but she'd continued, "What they're saying about me hurts, but I can take it. I know what happened and you know what happened, and that's all I need. Let them say what they're going to say. You're stressing yourself out, baby."

She'd kissed him again, smiled, declared, "I can handle anything as long as I have you" and strolled back to her class.

Things had gotten better after that. Ron let go of his mission to stop and berate every person who said the slightest negative thing about Kim, and Kim stopped letting those negative things effect her so deeply.

And now, here they were, recent graduates, surrounded by those who loved and supported them.

The Drs. P came up and enveloped the couple in hugs and kisses, and Ron could have been mistaken, but he swore Mr. Dr. P had tears in his eyes.

"My Kimmie-cub has grown up so fast," he sniffled, scooping Kim up in a bone crushing hug. "Going off to college, moving in with some boy -"

"Dad! Ron's not some boy," she laughed over his shoulder, doing her best to hug him back with his tight hold and Ron's refusal to let go of her hand. She was still a bit awestruck over the fact that both of their sets of parents had allowed them to move into the same apartment. They were both going to Tri-City University - Ron to join the culinary program and Kim to pursue criminal justice and they'd put together quite the campaign to convince the 'rents that moving in together was the best thing for them both. For all their work, it hadn't taken much effort to convince them, Kim's mom immediately taking up their crusade, quickly convincing the other three that Kim and Ron needed each other, were stronger together, and were responsible enough to handle something like this.

"Still, my baby girl is leaving me," he told her, finally pulling back. Anne patted his shoulder consolingly.

"Dad, don't be so dramatic," Kim chided him, smiling. "You'll see me all the time."

"Yeah, on TV," he grumbled.

She reached up to kiss his cheek before turning back to Ron. "We did it," she whispered, and by the look in her eyes Ron knew she meant more than just graduating high school - they'd survived countless missions, saved the world hundreds of times, remained best friends through some small fights and large fights, through Kim's bossy, selfish moments and Ron's careless, clumsy ones, through Eric and Yori and Brad.

"We did," he whispered before bending down and planting a tender kiss on her lips. Nearly the moment their lips connected a BEEP-BEEP-BE-DEEP sounded from Kim's pocket. She smiled, shaking her head. "I swear Wade times these things on purpose," she sighed as she pulled out the kimmunicator. "What's up Wade?"

"Hey, Kim," he greeted, apprehension coloring his voice. "Ron."

"What is it Wade?" Ron asked, crowding in close to Kim so he could see Wade's nervous face more clearly.

"I thought about waiting until tomorrow to tell you this - I didn't want to spoil your graduation day - but then I figured the sooner I get this over with the better," Wade explained. "I don't know how you two are gonna feel about it. It could be considered a good thing or a bad things, but either way I know it'll be a sensitive subject. I just thought -"

"Wade!" Ron exclaimed, cutting their tech guru off. He wrapped his arm more tightly around Kim's shoulders, preparing them both for whatever news was coming. "You're killing us. Please just say it."

"Brad's dead, guys."

At the two heroes' dumbstruck looks, he continued. "Evidently Drakken broke into jail to free Shego and, while he was at it, tortured Brad with some sort of shocking device before killing him. I don't think he took Brad's treatment of Shego very well."

"No kidding," Ron whispered.

He felt Kim's fingers clutch reflexively at his shirt at his back. "Brad's dead?" she asked.

Wade shook his head yes, but Ron was staring at Kim's face, searching hard for any sort of reaction to the news. She looked shocked and maybe even slightly relieved, but he didn't see any sign of regret or sadness.

"Thanks, Wade," he said, gently pulling the kimmunicator from Kim's hands and clicking it off. "Are you okay?" he asked her, once again scrutinizing every flicker of movement on her face.

She nodded her head. "Yeah," she breathed. "I think I might actually be good even." She focused her incredulous gaze on his face and let out a reluctant smile. "He's gone," she said. "Drakken killed him."

Ron nodded. "I know, right? Who'd have actually thought Drakken would make himself useful?"

It also didn't escape his notice that the same man who'd created Eric, the boy who played Kim and temporarily broke her heart, was also the man who'd destroyed Brad, the guy who'd tortured her, violated her, and threatened to kill both of them.

He figured that meant they were even.

"Is it wrong that I'm so okay with him being dead? That I'm maybe even relieved?" she asked, looking somewhere between uncertain and happy.

"KP, I've told you once and I'll tell you again and again until you get it through your head - you feel whatever the hell you want to feel and I'll support you, whatever it is," he told her. Then he thought a moment, and qualified, "Unless you're feeling like you want to break up with me. Then, I most definitely will NOT support you."

She snorted. "Please. You're such a goof."

He gasped as though he was unspeakably offended. "Me? A goof?" he asked incredulously, hand to his heart in outraged disbelief. "I happen to be one intense ninja badass!"

Kim chuckled, reaching to wrap her arms around his waist, locking her hands together behind his back. "True, but you're an intense ninja badass who is also a goof. A sweet, lovable goof, but a goof nonetheless."

"Isn't that contradictory?"

"Yeah, well you're full of contradictions," she told him, stretching up to kiss his jaw.

"What is this, a Starburst commercial?" he asked. "Next you're gonna say I'm solid, yet juicy like a liquid."

She tilted her head back and laughed. "I don't know about that. Maybe if that liquid was nacho cheese."

"Cheese!" Rufus squeaked, immediately waking upon the utterance of his favorite word, finding his way out of Ron's pocket and onto his shoulder.

"Uh-oh. Now you've done it. You know better than to mention cheese in me or Rufus's presence," Ron told her. "Now you've made us BOTH hungry for Bueno Nacho."

"Ron! We're at the best restaurant in town with delicious food surrounding us for a celebratory dinner with our friends and family! You don't need Bueno Nacho," she scolded him, exasperated, all thoughts of Brad, happy or otherwise, completely forgotten.

He didn't say anything, merely pushed out his lower lip and widened his big brown eyes, hitting her with her own weapon of mass persuasion full force.

"You can't use the PDP on me. I invented it!" Kim exclaimed, averting her eyes and attempting to strengthen her resolve. "I'm immune."

Rufus quickly joined in Ron's pleading, taking up his own little naked mole rate version of the Puppy Dog Pout. Kim took one look and was toast.

"Fine," she sighed, rolling her eyes. "We can go after dinner."

"Yay!" Ron and Rufus squealed. Kim fought a smile as she turned and walked toward the huge table where their families were now convening for dinner.

Ron quickly caught up to her, snatching up her hand and lacing his fingers through hers. "I love you, you know," he told her, smirking.

"More than Bueno Nacho?" she asked teasingly, raising a delicate eyebrow in his direction.

"KP, I'd never eat another bite of Bueno Nacho if it meant I had you forever."

She faltered, halfway to the table, turning to him and meeting his eyes. She wrapped her arms around his waist again, seeming to melt against him, her eyes softening with tenderness. "See what I mean?" she asked. "Sweet, lovable, goofy badass."

He smiled and they came together in a soft, lingering kiss, oblivious to their friends and family watching, until Monique shouted, "Jesus Christ, you two! Get a damn room! We're trying to EAT over here!"

Then they smiled against each others lips, broke apart, and joined their incredible support system in celebrating how far they'd come.


End file.
